Thirty Students Selected To Compete In Mars Rover Competition

Thirty students representing six Native American colleges from around the nation were selected to compete in a NASA Mars Rover competition at the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) student meeting this week.

This four-day Tribal Colleges and Universities event at Bismarck Event Center, North Dakota, offered students the opportunity to interact with NASA engineers and others professionals under the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) program, where students learn about careers in science and engineering. Four teams of students will compete in the construction and programming of a robotic rover that can traverse a small-scale Mars yard. The schools represented are Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute, Red Lake Nation College, Sinte Gleska University, Northwest Indian College, Fort Peck Community College and United Tribes Technical College.

Each team was paired with a NASA subject matter expert to guide them through the competition. Students also were provided with information on applying for NASA internships and engaging in NASA missions.

NCAS is an activity funded by the Minority University Research and Education Program (MUREP), which is committed to engaging underrepresented and underserved students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) through authentic learning experiences to sustain a diverse workforce. This competition at AIHEC was developed through a partnership between NCAS and MUREP.

“NCAS not only inspires community college students to advance in STEM fields, but it also opens doors for future careers at NASA,” said Joeletta Patrick, MUREP manager. “NCAS has a legacy of alumni moving through NASA internships and ultimately entering the NASA workforce. It is rewarding to see the progression of a student from NCAS participant to NASA colleague.”

(Source: NASA news release. Image from file)

FMI: ncas.aerospacescholars.org