WALLA WALLA – On Sat., March 9, AAUW’s Great Explorations in Education will present “Reach Beyond the Stars,” a science, technology, engineering and math adventure for 5th through 8th grade girls, at Whitman College, 9 a.m. - 2:45 pm. The cost is $5 and includes lunch. Registrations will be accepted through March 6 or until classes are full.

Setting the tone for this year’s event will be Dr. Liz MacDonald, a 1995 Wa-Hi graduate and NASA scientist, who will be the keynote speaker at Cordiner Hall.

Liz received a NASA scholarship to attend the University of Washington for her undergraduate degree; she earned a PhD. from the University of New Hampshire and then worked for nine years in satellite national security at the Los Alamos National Laboratory – all by the age of 37.

She currently works in NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland. She leads a citizen science project called Aurorasaurus (http://www.aurorasaurus.org/), which uses citizen science and social media to predict the Northern Lights, which can even be seen in Washington! In 2018, she announced the discovery of a new aurora called STEVE (Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement).

Liz has been studying the glitter of the Northern Lights for 20 years, and it never ceases to amaze her. In addition to doing citizen science and outreach such as keynoting this Great Explorations, Liz does some amazing high-tech space physics. She has also led teams that build instruments to measure charged particles in the space environment for NASA and DOE satellite and rocket missions. Outside of work, she enjoys skiing, hiking, and poetry. In 2018, Liz was named a Walla Walla Public Schools Graduate of Distinction.

After the keynote presentation, girls will have the opportunity to attend three workshops offering informal, hands-on experience with careers that utilize science, technology, engineering and math. These workshops will give the girls an opportunity to meet and form personal contacts with women in these exciting careers. There will be 30 workshops to choose from, with intriguing titles such as “The Telltale Heart,” “Getting Cheeky,” “Snap, Crackle, Pop,” “Eye Spy,” “Toothpicks and Gumdrops,” and “Can You Think Like a Planet?” Topics include art in science, space physics, robotics, all variations of biology, entomology, veterinary medicine, blood typing and many more.

Brochures with registration forms will be mailed and available at schools and the YWCA after February 4. Pre-registration is required and, this year, online registration is a new and preferred option (www.gewallawalla.com). The fee to attend is $5 and includes a lunch including fruit and water. Scholarships are available. Registration forms need to be received by March 6 or until classes are full.

For more information on registration or scholarships, please contact Carol Morgan, 520-9977, or e-mail questions to gewallawalla@gmail.com

Great Explorations is sponsored by the American Association of University Women Walla Walla, Whitman College, Walla Walla Public Schools, and the YWCA. Financial support is received from J.L Stubblefield Trust, Yancey P. Winans Testamentary Trust, Mary Garner Esary Trust, George T. Welch Testamentary Trust, Blue Mountain Community Foundation, and Clara and Art Bald Trust.  A special thanks also goes out to the Whitman College Computer Science Department, Dr. Janet Davis and the Senior Capstone Project for developing and creating the online registration website.