Lisa Damian of Rockport, Maine, is the 2013 recipient of the Society of Aviation and Flight Educators (SAFE) K-12 Classroom Teacher Grant award. Damian teaches physics at Camden Hills Regional High School in Rockport.
The $250 grant is meant to encourage classroom teachers to incorporate aviation and aerospace-themed lesson plans and projects into their regular classroom curriculum, helping support science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) studies, according to SAFE officials.
Damian’s proposal involves a three-week capstone project during the 2013-2014 school year challenging high school juniors and seniors to research, design and build a model rocket. The students must use a NASA engineering design process and apply Newtonian physics and numerical simulation to solve a second order differential equation.
Grant proposals were evaluated by seven SAFE aviation educators based on uniqueness of the project, lasting effect of the learning outcomes, and feasibility of project replication by other aviation educators.
SAFE is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and promoting aviation education at all levels of learning. SAFE membership includes many of the top FAA-certificated flight instructors in the U.S. and is a recognized leader in pilot training reform, safety education, and the mentoring of aviation educators.
For information on free resource materials for aviation education and SAFE membership, go to SafePilots.org
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Is the $250 a misprint? If it is not, then it is the cheapest way to get some publicity for the society. Kudos to the teacher, but $250? No, I am not suggesting that $250 is not real money, I am just questioning the news worthiness. The news really is the teacher, not the money.