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Blog Post October 5, 2022: 

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) provides programs for K-12 students with the goal of developing excitement and awareness about careers in STEM. One such program is the National Science Awards Program (NSAP). This is a Navy and U.S. Marines corps program that recognizes the accomplishments of eligible students at regional and state science and engineering fairs and awards those for producing and presenting quality STEM projects. Note: For those eligible students living overseas, there is also the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). 

For more information on the National Science Awards Program, visit the following website: 

https://www.onr.navy.mil/nsap/

For educators: Register your regional and/or state science fair through the website. 

For students: Award recipients must be U.S. citizen or permanent residents. Check with your school to see if your school or district is involved in any registered regional and/or state science fairs. 

Have fun exploring!

Blog Post December 6, 2022

Check out San Diego's STEM Ecosystem! On here you can find exciting opportunities and partnerships within San Diego's vibrant STEM industries. 

https://www.sdstemecosystem.org/

Blog Post December 13,  2022

A phenomenal piece of hardware + software has arrived for students in their classrooms. Databot can collect data using physical sensors and your classroom can then analyze it in near real-time. Check out some of their featured lesson plans!

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Lesson Plans Page

Blog Post February 27, 2023

Some of my DOD STEM colleagues shared this interesting engineering resource with me: 

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Hypersonics is an activity developed by Learning Undefeated to help students explore thermodynamics and the importance of heat transfer as it relates to speeds over Mach 5. 

The page has learning objectives, lesson plans, etc. detailed out for educators to implement in their classroom. I hope I get the opportunity to implement one soon.

Blog Post March 13, 2023

I just came back from the UCET 2023 Conference held in Provo, Utah. #TogetheratUCET

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With the help of DOD STEM I was able to attend and hear so many ideas that could be used in and outside of the classroom. If you're an educator I highly recommend attending in the future. The emphasis is on technology tools, but the application and use of them are so varied that many strands of education are covered. If possible, I would like to attend again next year!

Blog Post May 13, 2023

My attention was just brought to The Coding School. This organization offers computer science education for teacher and students at every grade level. Paid Professional Development opportunities are available for teachers, and various programs are available for students. Check them out and share with fellow educators and students!

Blog Post June 10, 2023

I just learned of a fantastic Engineering resource: The Seaworthy STEM in a Box

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Seaworthy STEM in a Box

Tom Jenkins gave us a great presentation on how to implement Team Building, Design Thinking, and other Engineering Processes in our classrooms. He walked us through the Density Column Exploration activity and various grading rubrics that he uses to assess both quantitative and qualitative aspects of the students' design portfolios. 

Check it out!

Blog Post June 30, 2023

I've been accepted to speak at CMC Palm Springs 2023.

My talk will center around discrete math (number theory) with applications in cryptography and computer science. The target grade levels are 7-12, but students and educators as early as grade 5 and as late as sophomore college level would find value in the session. 

If you are attending come by my presentation: 3:15pm Saturday November 4, 2023. 

Blog Post July 8, 2023

I am so inspired by the work of my fellow DOD STEM Ambassadors. Their planning for impact projects are so incredible. Below is mine and please reach out to DSEC, DOD STEM, and my fellow ambassadors for their slides. Some amazing ideas and opportunities can be found in them. 

Planning for Impact - Hunter Alzate