Mrs. Blackburn holds undergraduate degrees in science, psychology and child and family studies from Lander University and graduate degrees from RICE and University of Houston in Physics, Engineering, Mathematics, and Curriculum and Instruction. She began her career as a Counselor working in ER admissions and as a Child Play Therapist. She served as a school liaison for the Texas Mental Health Mental Retardation Authority (MHMRA) where she worked closely with school administration. She was a school teacher in Galveston ISD in Texas for more than 10 years. She was on the Southeast Regional Texas Magnet Planning Committee which introduced her into STEM Education in 2006. She began accepting contract work with several institutions in 2009. These contracts increased her knowledge in STEM Education. Mrs. Blackburn joined the UTMB Office of Educational Outreach as the Assistant Director and STEM Coach and works with the Southeast Regional Texas-STEM Center as a Mentor Teacher and STEM PD Facilitator. Mrs. Blackburn became a Texas Regional Collaborative (TRC) Mathematics and Computer Science Director in 2016. UTMB and the TRC provides Mrs. Blackburn with an avenue to continue working in schools and aiding teachers to integrate 21st Century Skills, Project Based Learning and STEM Practices that will benefit our future. In this role, she oversees several schools, districts and community colleges in a statewide effort to improve teaching and learning, career and college readiness, student support services, teacher and administrative coaching, and projects focused on promoting equity in STEM education.
Sessions in which Valerie Blackburn participates
- Sphero Your Way Out of the Death Star
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Boardroom
- 12:45 PM - 1:30 PM | 45 minutes
- Can you figure out the math to help your Jedi escape the Death Star? Wanting to try out some STEM with computer science ...
- Session
Sessions in which Valerie Blackburn attends
- Exoplanets in Our Backyard
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Space Center Theater
- 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM | 1 hour
- Our generation is the first in human history to travel to other worlds. With the help of robots, we’ve seen the lava plains of Venus, the fire f...
- Presentation
- Keynote Session- Thursday
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Space Center Theater
- 8:00 AM - 9:30 AM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- Mike Kincaid oversees strategic direction and leadership of NASA’s STEM engagement function,...
- Keynote
- STEAMtastic OUTREACH with the Canadian Space Agency CUBE SATELLITE Project
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Saturn Club
- 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- The presentation will introduce the Canadian Space Agency CubeSat Project and its applications with middle and high schoo...
- Session
- Color Your Chameleon With Interference
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Learning Innovation Center- Lab 2
- 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- From animals of all kind, optical instruments, and even sound, aspects of constructive and destructive interference will ...
- Session
- Lunch 1 Thursday
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Astronaut Gallery - Lunch 1
- 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM | 1 hour
- Intro Coding for Primary Students
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Saturn Club
- 11:45 AM - 12:30 PM | 45 minutes
- Think k-2 is too young for Spheros? This session will get you started! Begin with the basics and work towards programmin...
- Session
- Take-off with CAP's Free Aerospace-themed STEM Program!
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Saturn Club
- 1:45 PM - 3:15 PM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- Join this session to explore Civil Air Patrol’s new K-12 aerospace-related products and programs that will help your stud...
- Session
- Creating Your K-8 STEAM Lab/Makerspace with Confidence & Under Budget 2.0
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Boardroom
- 3:45 PM - 5:15 PM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- Join both James and Dana in a high energy and fun hands-on workshop that focuses on how to effectively create a STEAM Lab...
- Session
- When 911 is 9 Months Away: Solving Medical Challenges for a Mission To Mars
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Learning Innovation Center- ERC
- 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- In this session, attendees will be introduced to the real-life challenges of space medicine. Session participants will he...
- Session
- Cross-Curricular Coding to Engage Kids
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Learning Innovation Center- Lab 3
- 11:15 AM - 12:00 PM | 45 minutes
- This session will discuss a number of ways that basic coding can be incorporated into the classroom and used to address a...
- Session
- Lunch 2 Friday
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Astronaut Gallery- Lunch 2
- 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM | 1 hour
- The International Space Station: 20 Years of STEM Engagement Resources
- Signup required Gilruth Center - Off-Site Location (take bus) - Destiny
- 1:15 PM - 2:45 PM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- 2020 marks the 20th anniversary of continuous human presence on the International Space Station. This session celebrates ...
- Session
- The Code for Survival - Ozobot to the Rescue!' & 'From Water to Fuel'
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Boardroom
- 3:15 PM - 4:45 PM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- With the initial preparations already underway to send astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit for the first time in over 50 ye...
- Session
- SEEC Banquet
- Signup required
- 7:00 PM - 11:00 PM | 4 hours
- Destination Asteroid!: NASA Solar System Exploration
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Silvermoon
- 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- Join us for this hands-on activity session and gain experience and insight into the process of selecting an asteroid to i...
- Session
- Spheros Explore The Moon
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Silvermoon
- 11:45 AM - 12:30 PM | 45 minutes
- In this session teachers will learn how to use Spheros, 3D printing, the engineering design process, and the Giant Moon M...
- Session
- Lunch 2 Saturday
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Astronaut Gallery- Lunch 2
- 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM | 1 hour
- Any Bot, Any Place, Any Time: Creating Custom Robotics Competitions
- Signup required Space Center Houston (Hosting of all events take place on-line-virtually) - Saturn Club
- 1:45 PM - 3:15 PM | 1 hour 30 minutes
- Robotics isn’t always “one size fits all.” This session’s focus is helping educators to use any available robotic technol...
- Session