NASA Science Activation (SciAct) teams participated in the National Rural STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics) Summit held June 4-7, 2024 in Tucson, Arizona. Hosted by Kalman Mannis of the Rural Activation and Innovation Network (Arizona Science Center) and the SciTech Institute, the summit fostered learning and sharing among organizations dedicated to creating partnerships and pathways for authentic STEM learning in rural communities.

Participants included:

• Matt Cass and Randi Neff from SciAct’s Smoky Mountains STEM Collaborative, who presented “A sense of place: Crafting authentic experiences for rural STEM learners”;
• Tina Harte from NASA (Science Systems and Applications, Inc), who presented “Nature explorations with NASA”;
• Kalman Mannis from the SciAct STEM Ecosystems project and the Rural Activation and Innovation Network, who presented “Building leaders in STEM through coaching, connections, and camaraderie”; and
• members of the SciAct Rural Committee.

SciAct STEM Ecosystems is supported by NASA under cooperative agreement award number 80NSSC210007 and is part of NASA’s Science Activation Portfolio. Learn more about how Science Activation connects NASA science experts, real content, and experiences with community leaders to do science in ways that activate minds and promote deeper understanding of our world and beyond: https://science.nasa.gov/learn