Space Public Outreach Team: Successful STEM Engagement on Complex Technical Topics

TL;DR

The paper describes the successful implementation of the Space Public Outreach Team (SPOT) program, which trains college students to engage younger students in STEM topics through space-themed presentations, fostering inspiration and community impact.

Contribution

It introduces a train-the-trainer model for STEM outreach involving college students, demonstrating its effectiveness and adaptability across different regions and collaborations.

Findings

SPOT significantly increased youth engagement in STEM.

College students effectively communicated complex technical topics.

The program fostered positive role models and community involvement.

Abstract

It is the responsibility of today's scientists, engineers, and educators to inspire and encourage our youth into technical careers that benefit our society. Too often, however, this responsibility is buried beneath daily job demands and the routines of teaching. Space Public Outreach Team (SPOT) programs leverage a train-the-trainer model to empower college students to make meaningful impacts in their local communities by engaging and inspiring younger students through science presentations. SPOT takes advantage of the excitement of space and the natural way college students serve as role models for children. The result is a win-win program for all involved. This paper describes the original Montana SPOT program, presents analyses demonstrating the success of SPOT, gives overviews of program adaptations in West Virginia and with the NANOGrav collaboration, describes how college student presenters are able to share complex topics, and discusses the importance of college student role models. We hope that our experiences with SPOT will help others implement similar strategies in their own communities.