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Join us in celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15 to Oct. 15) to recognize Hispanic histories, culture and contributions. As a resource for AEOs and AEMs in squadrons and classrooms, we have a lessons page on our website that highlights accomplishments of Hispanic pioneers in aerospace/STEM fields.
For AEOs and AEMs, September and October are the perfect months to become involved in CAP's ACE Plus program. The program connects CAP squadrons with 5th- through 8th-grade teachers.
It's also time to complete tasks for the AEX Program.
You will want to mark three important dates on your calendar. Oct. 3 and Oct. 17 are the deadlines for registration in the AFA's CyberPatriot and StellarXplorers competitions (squadrons and schools can participate). On Oct. 22, award winners in CAP's National High Altitude Balloon Challenge for cadets will be announced.
More details on all these programs as well as some news updates are available in this newsletter. And don't miss the member story of an AEM from Florida Wing who is CAP's 2023 National Aerospace Connections in Education.(ACE) Teacher of the Year.
If you have any information you'd like to see highlighted in the newsletter, contact us at ae@capnhq.gov.
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THIS MONTH: Member story - Program updates - AE Safety Check - Curriculum - News and Events - Important things to know | |
Aerospace Education NHQ staff updates | |
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As many of you may know, Dr. Jeff Montgomery, Director of Aerospace Education, and Debbie Dahl, a long-time AE program manager at National Headquarters, retired last month. Dr. Montgomery was with CAP for more than 28 years. During his time, AE’s youth outreach grew to 500,000+ annually, Teacher Orientation Program flights were approved as Air Force assigned missions, and AE developed over 40 curricula products. The tools his team developed and fielded have made an incredible impact on our members and the aviation and aerospace industry as a whole, inspiring many young people to look at STEM and especially aviation careers.
Debbie Dahl was with CAP for 16 years. Some of her main duties included being the primary manager of the Aerospace Education Members (AEMs) program and also the main contact for all of the Aerospace Education Officers (AEOs). Through these programs, Debbie worked closely with over 5,700 AEM teachers and 3,500 AEOs across CAP, making an impact on over 500,000 youth annually.
We thank them for their many years of work for CAP and its members.
Dr. Shayla Broadway (pictured) has been promoted to Interim Director of Aerospace Education. Dr. Broadway has been with CAP/NHQ since 2018 and is a former classroom educator with several years of experience in the public school system, particularly in rural and underserved areas. She is also a former DoD STARBASE STEM Teacher and is certified through the National Institute for STEM Education as a STEM Certified Educator. She was selected as the Teacher of the Year at Holtville Middle School and Wetumpka Middle School in 2014 and 2017, respectively, and the Air Force Association, Montgomery Chapter, Teacher of the Year in 2016. Dr. Broadway is very excited for this opportunity to serve and looks forward to what the future will bring for AE.
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Learn more about CAP's Rocky Mountain Region AE's Solar Eclipse Citizen Science Mission | |
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On October 14, 2023, and April 8, 2024, North America will be crossed by solar eclipses. To make the most of these unique celestial events, Rocky Mountain Region CAP has partnered with NASA’s GLOBE Observer program to provide Civil Air Patrol members with the chance to become solar eclipse citizen scientists.
Over the course of each eclipse, squadrons across North America are invited to create teams of five to 10 members to track the effects of the solar eclipse on cloud cover, air temperature, and wind speed/direction. CAP citizen science teams will also help create the first continent scale data set that measures the effects of solar eclipses on VHF radio operations.
For CAP educator members, the RMR Solar Eclipse Mission team is currently creating a research project specifically designed to be implemented by elementary students during the April eclipse. Educators will be able to register their classroom for the project starting in January 2024.
To learn more about the Civil Air Patrol Solar Eclipse Citizen Science Mission or to register a CAP Team click HERE.
(Article submitted by Capt. Shannon Babb, Rocky Mountain Region External AE Officer; pictured, mission morale patch)
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CAP Aerospace Education honored
for Gaetz Aerospace Institute support
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Civil Air Patrol Aerospace Education has been working closely with the Gaetz Aerospace Institute (GAI) at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) to support their SMART@ER middle school and high school program. The premise of the GAI is simple; their concurrent enrollment model introduces high school students, primarily in public schools, to rigorous STEM-related courses that prepare students for college while providing them a clear pathway to college graduation and high-paying jobs in thrilling and dynamic industries. Their SMART@ER course series is a spin on STEM that focuses on the Space, Manufacturing, Aviation, Robotics and Technology at Embry‑Riddle.
CAP’s Aerospace Education mission, which reaches over 500,000 students a year nationwide, has been providing ERAU with curriculum for the SMART@ER program. They have made CAP AE’s Aerospace: The Journey of Flight textbook the official textbook and are also receiving STEM kits, ACE materials, and other curricula as needed.
Earlier this month, CAP AE participated in the Embry-Riddle SMART@ER (Space, Manufacturing, Aviation, Robotics, Technology @ Embry Riddle) Conference at the Shores Resort in Daytona Beach, Florida. This conference is specifically designed to support instructors, CTE directors, school administration and business partners to successfully launch and manage their programs at their school campus. Sue Mercer, AE program manager, facilitated two presentations to conference attendees on a wide selection of CAP AE materials available to them. Almost all of the 200 teachers who participate in the Gaetz program have now become CAP Aerospace Education Members.
To honor this well-aligned collaboration, Civil Air Patrol was presented with the Community Champion Award by the institute. Maj. Julio Pastoriza, Deputy Chief of Staff for Cadets and Aerospace Programs for Florida Wing, was in attendance to accept the award on behalf of AE CAP alongside Marianne Weiss, Deputy Director of Aerospace Education at NHQ.
(Pictured, from left: Kate Barnette, Director of Education Programs; Colleen Walsh-Conklin, Executive Director of Gaetz Aerospace Institute; Marianne Weiss, CAP Deputy Director of Aerospace Education; Maj. Julio Pastoriza, Deputy Chief of Staff for Cadet Programs and Aerospace Education, Florida Wing; Dave Moorefield, Director of Flight Operations)
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PROGRAM UPDATES
All hands in for ACE Plus lift off
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Classroom ACE teachers in grades 5-8 can be ‘adopted’ by a local CAP squadron again this year!
Teachers, if you desire to be adopted, complete the Request Form and send to your state’s Director of AE (see contact list HERE).
- State CAP leaders will connect you with the closest squadron.
- Adopting squadron will complete the squadron section and send to state Director of AE and adopt@capnhq.gov.
- CAP’s National HQ Ace Plus team will ship out materials to the squadron.
- Squadron and teacher will coordinate times for cadets and adults to come to the class.
- Take photos of your students with CAP adult and cadet members and share with us! Tag us at @CAPaerospace on Facebook; send us an email with names and school/squadron information; and/or submit to us by April 25 for a special ACE Plus award!
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Read about the winning 2023 National ACE Plus team to get an idea about how a great collaborative team works.
| If you have any specific questions after reading the information, contact adopt@capnhq.gov. | |
Aerospace Education Excellence (AEX) Program | |
AEX Award registration and completion for squadrons and AEMs: Has your squadron or classroom completed the 2022-23 AEX Award Program in eServices? Those completions need to be received by Sept. 30. Also, now is the perfect time to register for the 2023-2024 AEX Program. AEX program activities should take place from Oct. 1-Sept. 30 each year. Activities and resources are available in eServices, To learn more about the AEX Program, click the link below. | |
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Cadet teams register at no cost for AFA's
national STEM competitions
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Time is running out for CAP cadet teams to register for the two national STEM competitions of the Air & Space Forces Association (AFA)!
- CAP cadet teams need to register at no cost using the CAP squadron charter number and name to easily identify CAP teams.
- Schools can also register for the STEM programs, but may have to pay a fee unless a Title I school or a school with an AFJROTC unit participating.
- Both competitions have training materials for school and cadet teams.
CyberPatriot (for middle and high school teams) deadline is October 3.
StellarXplorers (for high school teams) deadline is October 17.
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K-12 educators: Apply for AFA's $599 grant | |
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Teachers in K-12 classrooms can apply for a $599 grant between Sept. 1-Dec. 15 each year. As a competitive grant program, 40 grant recipients will be selected and notified in February.
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Air & Space Forces Association (AFA) Educator Grant program information HERE.
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Apply online for a grant HERE.
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Civil Air Patrol's National High Altitude Balloon Challenge upcoming awards program | |
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On October 22, the winning cadet team of the 2023 National Col. Joe Kittinger Cup will be announced via live stream! The link will be announced to all participating teams and on @CAPaerospace Facebook page the week before the event, but put the event on your calendar now!
- 115 CAP teams of about 950 cadets prepared almost 1,000 experiments to be launched via weather balloons in Anderson, Indiana, reaching burst altitudes just over 100,000 feet. The Indiana Wing provided site, plane, drone, and ground support for an SAR exercise in support of the Challenge. (See Indiana Wing cadets in the photo.)
- The cadet teams are completing their post-launch science analysis reports and documentaries to submit for judging by Oct. 2. They will be eagerly awaiting the announcement of the Kittinger Cup winner with a $5,000 prize donated by the widow of the late Col. Joe Kittinger, HAB Ambassador. Other Air & Space Forces Association (AFA) grant prizes for best mission patch, pre-launch video, science slide, and documentary will also be announced.
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(Welcome to AE Safety Check! These safety nuggets are things to think about as you lead or participate in an Aerospace Education activity. The writer of this monthly feature is Lt. Col. Karen Cooper, who works in safety and risk management on the AE National Headquarters Staff and is also the Northeast Region DCS/Aerospace Education.)
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DON'T PLAY THE BLAME GAME
“But they started it!” Ever hear those words? We all have, and sometimes they are associated with unsafe behavior or actions. Now what? CAP Safety Culture is not in the blame business; so identifying who “started it” is not the primary objective. What is important? Who is smart enough to stop that unsafe behavior. If you see something that is either unsafe or has a potential for an unsafe outcome – step up! Say something! Do something! Report it! Be the smart one!
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If you have a safety topic you would like to be included in this space, please email kcooper@ner.cap.gov. | |
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AEM STORY
National ACE Teacher of the Year empowers students to be in charge of their own learning
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 |  | Meet Robert. H. Wakelyn Jr., Space Lab instructor/STEM Resource Teacher at Goldsboro Elementary Magnet School in Sanford, Florida. Goldsboro is the Civil Air Patrol National Aerospace Connections in Education (ACE) School of the Year, and he is the National ACE Teacher of the Year. ACE is a K- through 6th-grade program that provides grade-specific STEM lessons. The 2023 National ACE Liftoff will be held at Goldsboro later this fall. Wakelyn has been teaching since 2003, and his philosophy is to encourage his students to be in charge of their own learning. "When it’s done right, I believe education becomes more than the mere dissemination of knowledge. It becomes a journey," he says. "Although a student’s educational journey may start with educators and with classrooms, it should never end there." He says CAP's programs and lesson plans fit right into this approach because they are hands-on and combine different disciplines such as science and history. And his young learners enjoy the hands-on activities. "The students really enjoy assembling the various planes in the different grades and then having them fly," he says. The aerospace industry, he believes, holds much future for economic growth for the students, and he seeks to inspire them with aerospace lessons. In addition to participating in the ACE program, he also participates in CAP's STEM Kit program and integrates it with the ACE program. "The Weather Station STEM Kit is a great one, where it works hand-in-hand with the ACE lessons," he says. Click the link below to read the complete story.
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"The best experience is just seeing the students' excitement and joy when we do the (CAP) lessons. I think their amazement and excitement is the reward."
-- Robert Wakelyn, Florida AEM and 2023 National ACE Teacher of the Year
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CURRICULUM SPOTLIGHT
Foam Flyer
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Registration for Civil Air Patrol's Aerospace Connections in Education (ACE) Program opened last month and is ongoing. ACE is a K-6 grade-specific STEM program. This month's lesson plan is from the ACE program guide for third grade. In the Foam Flyer lesson, students will identify and describe three of the four forces of flight. They will identify basic parts of the plane, including fuselage, wings, cockpit, propeller, and tail. This lesson uses the class set of the foam gliders provided to each ACE third-grade teacher. Each student will assemble their foam flyer and then practice flying the planes. The lesson is found in the Grade 3 ACE Instructors Guide as Academic Lesson #4. Or find the Foam Flyer lesson plan here. Find more information on the ACE Program here.
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Each month, this space features important highlights or answers to frequently asked questions. Here are three things you need to know as an AEM or AEO. | |
You can update your eServices profile information. Here's how: | |
Sign into eServices and click on your name in the top right hand corner. Update your email address, mailing address, contact numbers, etc. This ensures you receive timely and pertinent information from CAP. If you are a teacher, ensure your primary email address is your home and your secondary email address is your school so that your annual renewal email and any other important information will not end up as spam in your school email account.
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AEMs: Is it time to renew your membership? | |
All Aerospace Education Members (AEMs) are offered an annual FREE “in-kind renewal." The online renewal email is sent 60 days prior to the membership expiration date. A renewal banner appears at the top of the eServices sign-in page 90 days prior to expiring. (You can’t renew earlier than 90 days.) Find additional information at the link below. | |
AEOs: Reach out to AEMs whose memberships expire soon | |
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AEOs, this is the perfect time to reach out to your AEMs whose memberships expire within 60 days or whose memberships have expired. For more guidance, see Recruiting and Retention of AEMs on the AEO Resources page link below.
Please note: CAP has several categories of membership, but each member can only be assigned one category of membership. Any adult uniformed member, who is an educator, may access all the resources available to an AEM.
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ACE registration is open for the 2023-2024 school year | |
Last year, more than 97,000 students participated in CAP's Aerospace Connections in Education (ACE) program. K-6 teachers can register for this grade-specific STEM program for the 2023-2024 school year by clicking the link below. | | | | |
