By Sarah Hall

Editor

While his students were settling in for their first week of summer vacation, Gillette Road Middle School math and science teacher Steven Bacon was off on an adventure many of them would envy: Bacon was one of about 200 teachers to attend Honeywell Educators at Space Academy camp at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala.

Bacon said he was one of about 1,000 teachers to apply for the program, which offers middle school science and math teachers 45 hours of classroom and practical instruction focused on science and space exploration to help them become more effective at STEM instruction. The camp took place from June 16 to 20 and included teachers from 56 countries and 52 U.S. states and territories.

Bacon, who learned of the program through a colleague, said he was “ecstatic” to be chosen to join the other educators at the camp.

“I was shocked,” said Bacon, who teaches fifth grade math and science at Gillette. “I knew how grueling a process it was to be selected. I was pleasantly surprised to be in such special company.”

That special company included a few other local teachers. In addition to Bacon, four other Onondaga County educators participated in the program this year: Heather Bermingham, who teaches at the Westside Academy at Blodgett in the Syracuse City School District; Donna Fortugno-Erikson, a teacher at Lyncourt School in the Lyncourt Union Free School District; Carmen Primiano from Camillus Middle School in the West Genesee Central School District; and Susanne Sobon of Pine Grove Middle School in the East Syracuse Minoa Central School District.

Bacon said it was the connection to other educators that made the experience meaningful.

“It was great to meet teachers from all over the world and share ideas and learn more about what they do in the classroom,” he said. “We were finding what types of resources they were using in the classroom. That was the big thing. They’re using a lot of project-based learning. We talked about how they do grouping of students and how they work with students with special needs or students who need additional supports. It’s nice to have someone to talk to about it.”

Among the contacts Bacon made is a teacher who runs a robotics club, something Gillette plans to launch next year.

“You have a contact who’s done this before,” Bacon said. “I have someone to go to for advice about it.”

While the connections were important—indeed, much of the camp is structured around team-building—the activities are the main draw. In addition to conferences and discussions led by teachers, engineers and astronauts, teachers participated in simulations such as flying the space shuttle and the moon chair (which simulates reduced gravity). They also got a full tour of the facility, given by engineers that built the space shuttles. For Bacon, that was the best part.

“The most interesting thing to me was meeting an engineer who worked on the Saturn 5 rocket that was used to launch the Apollo missions,” he said. “We went and toured around the whole thing, the actual rocket, which is about 360 feet tall. It’s laying down in the museum, and he talked about the computer system and the communication system, and when he got to the engine, he says, ‘I want to show you something.’ And he walked around to the other side, where there’s a photo of people working 50 years ago on the equipment. He said, ‘You see that guy on the left? That’s me.’ So he’s actually part of the museum.”

In all, Bacon said it was an incredibly valuable experience that he would recommend to other teachers. He said many of his co-workers at Gillette hope to take part in the future.

“A lot of my colleagues would love to do it,” he said. “They’re just waiting for the opportunity.”