Education for the journey to the Moon, Mars, and beyond

Abstract

The National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) Education and Public Outreach Program (EPOP) is supporting the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Strategic Education Framework's vision—“to capture the imagination of students … strengthen the nation's future workforce … and [improve] the overall teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines”—through a comprehensive kindergarten through postdoctoral education program [S. O’Keefe, NASA, The New Age of Exploration: NASA's Direction for 2005 and Beyond, NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC, 2005]. The current NSBRI EPOP is comprised of four programs: kindergarten through undergraduate college (K-16); graduate and postdoctoral fellowship programs; and Space Medicine Grand Rounds and Aerospace Medicine Board Meetings, which are held at NASA's Johnson Space Center. The mission of the NSBRI EPOP is to train scientists and teachers, inspire and prepare students to pursue science careers, and promote public engagement in space exploration. This paper focuses on the accomplishments of the K-16 program and references ongoing efforts to strengthen the 21st Century US science workforce.