August 24, 2022, Santa Rosa – Will Young, a student at Santa Rosa Junior College, was selected by NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) to attend the NCAS Virtual Experience, August 3-9, 2022. 

Young’s successful completion of a five-week online NCAS course earned him a spot to participate in the NCAS Virtual Experience. Young was one out of hundreds of community college students from across the country to participate in the virtual experience.

Selected community college students learned about NASA’s missions and careers in science and engineering throughout virtual experiences. Students formed teams and designed a mission to explore the Moon or Mars. Each student team joined a design team, fulfilled a team role, managed a budget, and developed communication and outreach strategies. Students attended events hosted by NASA subject matter experts, received information on how to apply for NASA internships, and virtually toured NASA’s unique facilities during the event.

The Minority University Research and Education Program, or MUREP, funds NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars. MUREP commits to engaging underrepresented and underserved students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) with authentic learning experiences to sustain a diverse workforce. 

With this activity, NASA continues the tradition of engaging the nation in its mission of human exploration and sustainable expansion across the solar system and bringing new knowledge and opportunities back to Earth. 

“NCAS inspires community college students to advance in STEM fields, and it also opens doors for future careers at NASA. NCAS alumni can often move on to NASA internships and possibly ultimately enter the NASA workforce. It is rewarding to see the progression of a student from NCAS participant to NASA colleague,” says Torry Johnson, Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) Manager.  

For additional information, please contact NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars by email at JSC-NCAS@mail.nasa.gov or by phone at (281) 244-7029. For more information, visit: 

https://go.nasa.gov/ncas 

For more on MUREP, visit: www.nasa.gov/education/murep