FY 2018 Year 4 Extension Annual Performance Document New Hampshire Space Grant Consortium Lead Institution: University of New Hampshire Director: Dr. Antoinette Galvin Telephone Number: (603)-862-3511 Consortium URL: www.nhsgc.sr.unh.edu Grant Number: NNX15AH79H Lines of Business (LOBs): NASA Internships, Fellowships, and Scholarships; STEM Engagement; Institutional Engagement; Educator Professional Development A. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: The National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program consists of 52 state-based, university-led Space Grant Consortia in each of the 50 states plus the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Annually, each consortium receives funds to develop and implement student fellowships and scholarships programs; interdisciplinary space- related research infrastructure, education, and public service programs; and cooperative initiatives with industry, research laboratories, and state, local, and other governments. Space Grant operates at the intersection of NASA’s interest as implemented by alignment with the Mission Directorates and the state’s interests. Although it is primarily a higher education program, Space Grant programs encompass the entire length of the education pipeline, including elementary/secondary and informal education. The New Hampshire Space Grant Consortium is a Designated Consortium funded at a level of $760, 000 for fiscal year 2018. B. PROGRAM GOALS: The strategic goal of the New Hampshire Space Grant Consortium (NHSGC) is to contribute to the education and development of an inspired, highly skilled, technically literate, diverse workforce in New Hampshire that provides potential human resources and research expertise to support NASA strategic goals. Consortium objectives include the expansion, creation, or sustaining of opportunities for students within the State to participate in, and make connections with, NASA aeronautics and space programs; fostering intra-state and regional collaborations in support of regional and national space grant priorities; and developing science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education opportunities in New Hampshire, with emphasis on higher education (including the community college system), but also with pre-college and informal education pipeline activities — being mindful of benefits to the State, its businesses, and its citizens. The programmatic elements include projects and activities that contribute to these objectives. The primary program elements (Educate and Employ) include NIFS, higher education activities, and research infrastructure activities. The secondary program elements (Inspire and Engage) provide “pipeline” precollege (K-12) and informal education activities, including educator professional development. 1 SMART Targets for Primary Elements 1) Match or exceed New Hampshire’s non-Asian/non-Pacific Islander minority higher education enrollment in ethnic diversity (11.9%) in the combined primary elements, consortium-wide 2) Match or exceed 40% female awardees in the combined primary elements, consortium- wide 3) Provide at least 38.5 NIFS awards, consortium-wide 4) Support at least 7 higher education students in hourly research assistantships and provide travel support to 17 students 5) Support at least 1 student symposium and 1 seminar series annually, showcasing NASA- related research 6) Where and when required, provide longitudinal tracking of significant awards using the EPSS Tracking System. Submit student information as required into the OEPM system 7) Support curriculum or faculty development for 6 STEM faculty, which may include early-career post-doctorates 8) Support enhancement of a data analysis research tool SMART Targets for Secondary Elements 9) Provide 130 precollege (K-12) in-school, after-school, and distance learning programs reaching at least 600 students 10) Provide K-12 teacher development for 10 teachers 11) Provide at least 3 STEM K-12 activities on a college campus 12) Support an annual 1-day aerospace festival for the general public, engaging 300 persons 13) Support rental exhibits (1 traveling, 1 in development) 14) Support 3 informal educator(s) in professional development activities C. PROGRAM/PROJECT BENEFITS TO PROGRAM AREAS: NIFS Benefit, an undergraduate on being a NASA intern: ‘I would emphatically say that my internship at NASA Ames Research Center in the aeromechanics branch was a rewarding and worthwhile experience that was only possible with the support of the NH space grant. I was able to work with a small group of students on the mechanical design of a new delivery drone, as well as do research into the use of law enforcement drones by local departments. In addition, the aeromechanics branch brought together around 50 interns with diverse backgrounds and I was able to engage with many of them throughout my summer, both in engineering and social contexts. Living in the on-base lodge provided many opportunities for mingling with interns from all disciplines at ARC, and I enjoyed many nights playing softball and Frisbee. The environment at Ames had a positive impact on me—there were many times 2 when I was genuinely motivated to work harder and push myself academically just to be able to understand the cutting-edge research presented at the symposiums. In closing, I would definitely recommend that NH Space Grant continue to support internships at NASA ARC.’(Michael Fraunberger, Dartmouth College Physics Student on his internship experience in 2018) NIFS and PC Benefit, an untraditional community college student, on taking teacher certification courses: ‘The Space Grant made getting my Teaching Degree financially possible at a school that made it logistically possible to earn the Certificate while still raising my children.’ (Kristin Mullen, undergraduate in the NHTI Teacher Education Conversion Program – 2014, 2015, 2017 Space Grant Scholarships, now at Concord NH School District - 7th Grade Science Teacher) HE Benefit, STEM recruitment/retention: ‘At the conference, I talked to many engineering consulting companies and others that offer internships for GIS analysts and engineers in the field. I am thrilled to have these connections for later in life. I got the chance to see how professionals use ESRI programs in their everyday workday. If it were not for the two of you, I’m not sure that I would have been exposed to this passion for GIS work. Prior to the conference, I knew that I liked GIS but I wasn’t sure it was something I wanted to continue to grow and work in. After the conference, I can see myself pursuing further education in GIS. It is such an ideal trade to be knowledgeable in within my professional field. Once again, I would like to express my sincere thank you for your hard work in doing everything you could to send us to California for the trip.’ (Angela Howard, UNH Environmental Engineering undergraduate, for ESRI conference travel support, 2018) D. PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS: • NASA Internships, Fellowships, and Scholarships (NIFS): These include internships meeting a threshold of 400 hours, graduate fellowships, and undergraduate scholarships. NIFS SMART Metric 3 (Target exceeded): 90 NIFS awardees were funded. UNH supported 13 students; PSU supported 7 students; 47 Community College students received awards; and Dartmouth awarded 23 students. One of the Dartmouth students had a NASA internship at Ames Research Center. Represented STEM disciplines in NIFS awards included aviation technology, advanced machine tool technology, mathematics, computer science, life science, biology, bioengineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, chemical engineering, civil engineering, engineering physics, space science, physics, earth science, geospatial science, environmental science, meteorology, and STEM teacher (K-12) certification. • Higher Education projects: These include individual student research experiences and team research experiences; seminar and symposium support; and student travel support. HE SMART Metric 4, Supporting Student Research (Target exceeded): 3 29 higher education students received direct funding, including 10 UNH students (in Physics, Engineering, GIS), 5 Dartmouth students (Engineering and Physics), 10 Dartmouth Women in Science Project (WISP) participants, and 4 students working at MSDC. Of special note, the Women in Science Project (WISP) at Dartmouth College provides internships to first and second-year women students doing research in areas related to NASA. WISP has been shown to have a positive effect on retention of women in STEM disciplines, and it thereby makes significant contributions to Space Grant diversity goals. Team interdisciplinary research supported at UNH included the RockSatXN 2018 (Colorado and Virginia Space Grants and NASA Wallops). The UNH project involved the design, fabrication and test of a low-light photometer to be flown on a sounding rocket. The photometer incorporates a narrow-band filter to enable it to measure optical emissions from NOx in Earth’s high-altitude atmosphere (thermosphere). Energetic electron precipitation that causes “pulsating aurora”, in theory, can also increase NOx densities at altitudes near 90- 100 km. These NOx populations can be mixed down to altitudes of approximately 30 km, where they can contribute to ozone depletion. The objective for this project was to fly such a photometer to validate the instrument performance, thereby supporting the development of a standard sounding rocket project to explore this theory. At Dartmouth College, team interdisciplinary research