THE CHRISTA CORRIGAN MCAULIFFE CENTER FOR EDUCATION AND EXCELLENCE

As teacher, Mission Specialist, and Framingham State College alumna, Christa Corrigan McAuliffe has inspired both students and educators for nearly two decades. The McAuliffe Center was established to honor her commitment to education by providing exciting, standards-based programs in the pursuit of excellence. The Challenger Learning Center is the McAuliffe Center’s best-known program. In full-size mockups of both Houston’s Mission Control and a space station interior, middle-school students apply the principles of physical science to the real-time challenges of a simulated space flight.

Just up the hill is the newly renovated Framingham State College Planetarium. The thirty-foot dome brings the majesty of the universe down to Earth, with original programming from the McAuliffe Center that combines state-of-the-art technology with current educational philosophy.

In partnership with the Science Education Department of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, the McAuliffe Center brings the ARIES hands-on astronomy curriculum to teachers across the United States.

The McAuliffe Center’s relationship with NASA gives teachers throughout New England access to the agencies numerous space-related programs, including Mission Mathematics and Liftoff to Learning. Building a Presence for Science, a National Science Teachers Association program in which more than 150 Massachusetts science teachers facilitate the integration of science education standards into classrooms statewide, is yet another example of the Center’s collaborative efforts. The McAuliffe Center is located on the FSC campus in O’Connor Hall. Call (508) 626-4050, or visit our website at www.christa.org, for more information.

Framingham State College has established the Christa Corrigan McAuliffe Scholarship Program to attract, recognize, and encourage exceptionally talented students who wish to study at Framingham State College. Successful applicants are awarded $1,000 toward full-time study. The scholarship may be renewed for up to four years of study at the College. All prospective first-year students, new transfer students, or continuing full-time undergraduate students enrolled at the College may apply for the scholarship.