Outreach

Traditional Counties of the Alabama Black Belt spanning 17 counties in a horizontal line across the state.

UASpace is a University of Alabama registered student organization which is currently working to successfully launch and orbit the University of Alabama’s first satellite. In addition to the technical work that the organization is doing, team members are actively working in the Black Belt of Alabama to inspire the next generation of students to pursue STEM fields.

The Black Belt of Alabama is a historically under-educated area with high levels of unemployment, substandard living conditions, and limited access to medical care. In 2019, Alabama was labeled the sixth poorest state in the nation with 16.9 percent of citizens living below the poverty line (Alabama Possible, 2019). In the Black Belt alone, the poverty level was at an astounding 27.7 percent (Alabama Possible, 2019). By visiting middle and high schools in the Black Belt and showing students the wonders of space exploration, UASpace is training the next generation of systems-focused engineers while changing the life trajectories of students and families in this region of Alabama. Hands-on experience with 3D printed CubeSats, opportunities to send commands to the BAMA-1 CubeSat after launch, tracking of satellites currently in orbit, and info-sessions on the importance of CubeSats each provide Black Belt students with the confidence that they too can share UASpace’s passion for space exploration and achieve a higher education to one day become the next generation of engineers.

Virtual Classroom Update

In March 2020 some of our plans were changed with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. In an effort to still serve the students of Alabama and the nation, our team has put together a folder of various K-12 math and science activities and lessons. While traditionally created for the state of Alabama and based on Alabama’s math and science standards from 2016, we feel that this will be beneficial for students everywhere! Our hope is that you will share these lessons with teachers, parents, students and children to help foster the same passion for space that our team has. In return for these free worksheets, all we ask is that in our folder, you go to our spreadsheet labeled “School and Grade Use” and input your student(s)’s school, city, state, and subject. This will help us keep track of growth overtime.

Please share this folder (shorturl.at/kxLW3) with all of your parent and teacher friends so we can fulfill our goal of service with the world! And while this goes without saying it is worth a mention, please do not replicate, copy, or alter any of these lessons in any form. We have spent a great deal of time making these free activities and want to keep them available for free for the world to use.