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Using Grants to Fund GLOBE Teaching and Training in West Virginia

Jun 14, 2020

From GLOBE Teacher/Partner Rick Sharpe.

In West Virginia the GLOBE program is administered by the NASA IV&V ERC Partnership along with Fairmont University. I have two roles in the partnership, that of a GLOBE teacher and that as GLOBE Training Coordinator. As a result of the dual roles, I work actively in the GLOBE program year-round.

Huntington students receive recognition at the 2019 SRS — Huntington students receive recognition
at the 2019 SRS,

During the school year I work as a GLOBE teacher with students as they research and collect data for their projects for the GLOBE Regional Student Research Symposium (SRS). At Huntington High School the project topics each year are climate change and water quality of a local stream. Climate change project topics have included Aerosols, Surface Temperatures, and, the Urban Heat Island Effect. The other annual GLOBE project is the study of a local stream heavily impacted by sewage spills, erosion, economic development, and ineffective sewer systems. The stream studies involve multiple field trips that are funded by grants from institutions like Dominion Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Benedum Foundation. This project is important because it is addressing a local community environmental threat by collecting much-needed water quality data for citizen groups as they work to effect changes in policies and enforcement. These projects engage students in citizen science and demonstrate the roles citizens must play if we are to minimize the environmental impact of human activity.

During the summer my role changes as I conduct GLOBE trainings for teachers in various protocols like Surface Temperatures, Aerosols, Hydrology, and the GLOBE Mobile apps. Teacher trainings are funded by grants where GLOBE protocols are used to fulfill grant requirements for training teachers. A National Science Foundation grant funded Earth and Space Science teacher certification where GLOBE Atmospheric protocols were used for the meteorology content. This project trained 100 teachers in Surface Temperature and Cloud protocols over three years and provided equipment for classroom use. GLOBE hydrology protocols were used to provide the teacher training requirements for a multi-year grant called the Appalachian Freshwater Initiative. This grant ran for five years and was administered through three universities: West Virginia University, Marshall University, and West Virginia State University. This grant trained ninety teachers in GLOBE Hydrology and Cloud protocols and provided equipment for teachers to use in their classrooms.

The key to much of the activity of the GLOBE program in the NASA IV&V partnership lies in the funding through grants. Grants enable the partnership to offer teacher training, stipends, and classroom equipment for teachers.