Innovative Partnerships Expand NASA's Summer Education Reach

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Jun 26, 2013, 01:43 ET

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA has selected more than 170 educational organizations nationwide to receive Summer of Innovation mini-awards of as much as $2,500 each.

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The awards are designed to expand NASA's education network and help the agency keep middle school students engaged in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) activities throughout the summer break and beyond.

The awardees include non-profit educational organizations, public and private schools, youth foundations and science centers in 41 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Each awardee is providing summer learning activities based on one of eight themed camp guides: aeronautics, designing for space, life science, Mars exploration, mission to planet Earth, robotics unplugged, rocketry and solar system adventures.

The awardees were chosen from more than 400 proposals NASA received in response to a solicitation in May seeking collaborators to infuse NASA-themed STEM content into existing summer and after school programs for middle school students. The solicitation focused community-based organizations.

Paragon TEC Inc. of Cleveland manages and administers the 2013 Summer of Innovation mini-grants for NASA. To ensure a fair and open competition, a panel of STEM professionals outside NASA reviewed the applications and made final recommendations.

To view the complete list of Summer of Innovation mini-award recipients, visit:

http://go.nasa.gov/12dKwKm

To learn more about NASA's Summer of Innovation project, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/soi

To learn more about NASA's education programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/education

SOURCE NASA