Ian Lekven Accepted to NASA’s High School Aerospace Scholars Program

Ian Lekven ’23 has been accepted to NASA’s High School Aerospace Scholars program. High School Aerospace Scholars is an authentic learning experience for Texas high school juniors to engage with NASA’s mission and become the next generation of explorers. Like-minded students will complete an online curriculum in exploration and discovery. During the school year, Texas High School Aerospace Scholars (HAS) students will complete an online course which includes four one-month modules.

Interactive online lessons and activities related to space exploration, Earth science, technology, and aeronautics familiarize scholars with NASA’s six themes of: Humans in Space, Moon to Mars, Earth, Space Technology, Flight, and Solar System and Beyond. To discover the past, present and future of exploration on and off the Earth, students will complete four modules named after the stages of a Moon and Mars mission: Getting There, Discovering There, Living There, and Working There. Within each Module there are four topics: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math; each including interactive lessons focusing on Earth, Aeronautics, the International Space Station, Moon to Mars, and the Solar System. Each topic culminates in a quiz and rubric-based activity.

The highest achieving students are invited to a five-day gamified virtual experience during the summer where they will be mentored by NASA scientists and engineers while working in teams to plan an Artemis-themed mission to the Moon and Mars. Students will engage with NASA engineers and scientists who guide and facilitate students as mentors through research, design challenges, and a preliminary design review presentation. Mentors also provide students guidance related to STEM careers. Top teams attend a two-day residential experience at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX.