Brooke Patterson never planned on working for NASA. The University of North Alabama junior is double-majoring in secondary education and mathematics, not aerospace engineering. But this summer, that combination made her the first education intern in the Alabama Space Grant Consortium’s partnership with UNA, tasked with turning NASA’s Artemis program into lessons that hundreds of Alabama students will encounter this year.
“I never would have imagined that my background and interests in mathematics and education could connect so naturally to NASA and space exploration,” Patterson said. “This experience has shown me just how broad STEM truly is.”
Working under Melissa Simmons, the ASGC’s outreach and program coordinator, Patterson built age-appropriate presentations breaking down Artemis (NASA’s mission to return humans to the Moon) for K-12 audiences.
“Her hard work is certainly not going to sit on the shelf,” Simmons said. “Brooke’s summer internship may have concluded, but her impact will continue to inspire Alabama classrooms for a long time to come.”
UNA joined the ASGC in late 2023, giving students access to the consortium’s scholarships, fellowships and internships. Patterson was selected through a partnership between ASGC and faculty in UNA’s Spencer College of Education and Human Sciences, making it the first time an education major has filled the role.
“ASGC provides and supports highly valuable hands-on student experiences centered on expanding the knowledge of the goals and mission of NASA,” said Dr. Matt Green, associate dean of Spencer College and UNA’s campus director for the ASGC. “It is an honor for UNA to be part of this organization.”
Patterson said the internship will shape both her remaining coursework and her future classroom.
“My goal was to take the exciting and sometimes complex work NASA is doing and make it engaging and understandable for young students,” she said.
Got a tip for OTR? Send your tip to [email protected] with related photo/video, your name, phone number, and e-mail address.
