Space camp helps Oregon teacher blast off scientific careers

6/20/2007

As a sixth grader, Karina Hahn-Claydon had a blast learning about astronauts at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala.

Now, as an eighth grade teacher at Fassett Middle School in Oregon, she's revisiting the space camp she loved as a child in hopes of inspiring her students.

Mrs. Hahn-Claydon, 32, of Troy Township, is one of 265 science and math teachers from 21 countries and 43 U.S. states who received scholarships for the camp this year from Honeywell International.

The scholarship will pay for one week of the Honeywell Educators at Space Academy Program, which began Monday.

Nearly 1,000 teachers applied.

"I'm just excited to be chosen to go," Mrs. Hahn-Claydon said.

She said she's been interested in space since she was a child and has always found it fascinating that space technology changes so rapidly.

The program is designed to help teachers inspire the next generation to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and math, said Valerie Sorge, project manager with Honeywell Hometown Solutions.

"We want to get [students] more involved with math and science, and to do that, we need to connect to the teachers in a much more personal way," she said.

"By getting the teachers to come down to the space academy, we're hoping to inspire them to bring alive math and science in the classroom. If we can find a way to bring science