2011 MSFC NASA Academy
Week One Summary

Sunday – May 29, 2011
Most of the RA’s arrived yesterday or today at the University of Alabama Huntsville North Campus Residence Hall. The RA’s were welcomed to the residence halls and the Academy program by a Spaghetti Dinner hosted by the Operations Managers. This was a fun social event and a fun way to get to know the NASA Academy participants as well as the participants in the NASA Robotics Academy and the NASA Propulsion Academy.

Monday – May 30, 2011
Happy Memorial Day! At 1:30pm today there was an informal orientation with Dr. Frank Six and Dr. Gerald Karr in the study lounge of the residence hall. The RA’s were treated with free pizza and pop while we got the 4-1-1 on everything NASA Academy. After Dr. Six and Dr. Karr left for the afternoon, the RA’s and Operations Manager sat down to plan out our fun weekends this summer. This is definitely going to be a summer to remember. After all the “business” was taken care of, the RA’s and Operations Manager took a trip to Casa Blanca for some delicious Mexican food, followed by a late showing of Pirate of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. I think we were all missing Will Turner and Elizabeth Swan…it just wasn’t quite the same without them!

Tuesday – May 31, 2011
The day of formal orientation – our first official day of work! Orientation took place at the Education Training Center at MSFC. We were treated to fruit and water as refreshments before the discussions started. We learned about all the security, safety, and training that MSFC expects from their summer interns and co-ops. After a few hours of group orientation, we broke off into our smaller groups to get our temporary badges, car decals, etc. We had a little extra time to kill so the RA’s trekked over to UAH to get our Charger Cards! When we returned to MSFC, we were treated to sandwich and salad lunches and were able to meet and speak with our mentors. After the informal lunch meet-and-greet, each RA traveled with their mentor to their work site to become acquainted with the personnel in their building as well as learn the specifics of their projects.  After work the RA’s spent the evening at Bridge Street.

Wednesday – June 1, 2011
Happy 1st day of June!! Today started off with a morning meeting in a residence hall study lounge to go over the agenda for the week and was followed by a full day of work with the PI’s. I think most RA’s got started on their projects and are ready to hit the ground running. Wednesday was determined to be our free evening. Some went out to dinner, some played Frisbee, some went to the UAH gym...everyone seemed to find something to their pleasing.

Thursday – June 2, 2011
We started our day with our morning meeting followed by a full day of work for each RA with their PI’s. The RA’s who work on center were badged at 9am and given the semi-permanent parking passes. After work we had an evening speaker who was an alumni of the 2002 Goddard Academy. It was really cool to listen to his experiences and advice. He also seemed very eager to make sure we have stuff to do on the weekends!!! After our speaker was done with his presentation, all the RA’s headed down to the UAH NCRH courtyard where the Operations Managers were hosting a BBQ for all of the current Academy participants as well as an alumni that were in the area. There were delicious grilled hot dogs, hamburgers, and cake!! This event was a great networking opportunity and a great opportunity to learn what to expect for the next 9.5 weeks. It was also a great chance to see how all of our hard work now will definitely pay off in the near future.

Friday – June 3, 2011
TGIF! We started the day with our usual morning meeting followed by an 8 hour workday with our PI’s. The RA’s who work at an off-base location received their badges and parking permits today. After work, a few of the RA’s attended a Zumba class at the UAH gym followed by a dinner with the rest of the RA’s at a pizza place called Mellow Mushroom. What a funny name!

Saturday – June 4, 2011
The RA’s spent the whole morning and afternoon volunteering at the MSFC Family Picnic that was held on base. Before our shifts began, we were able to explore the picnic. Many of us found pleasure in doing all the kiddie things such as the blow-up slide and obstacle course as well as the classic carnival games. Some of us even joined the Academy tie-dye party and tie-dyed our NASA intern shirts that we received during orientation. Before beginning our shift manning the BINGO booth, we enjoyed a free meal of BBQ Chicken, Pork, and Veggie Burgers. After lunch, we spent 2.5 hours taking tickets and handing out BINGO boards, after which, we were all burned out. After returning to the dorms, a few RA’s played volleyball and socialized with the other Academies while others took naps. For dinner, 5 RA’s went to Edo Japanese Restaurant to enjoy a wonderful meal of sushi while some others spent their evening in the Emergency Room due to an injury on the volleyball courts. Thank goodness the injured RA will be ok. Following the evening events, many RA’s retreated to a dorm room to watch a movie and play video games until the wee hours of the morning. Overall, it was a pretty fun and exciting day.

Sunday - June 5, 2011
The Robotics Academy joined us NASA Academy RA’s for the afternoon to go watch the X-Men: First Class at the Monaco Theatre. Before the movie began, we went to another pizza place at Bridge Street where we had lunch. Since there was still a lot of time to kill before the movie actually started, we all roamed around and did a little shopping. It was no surprise that both Academy programs ended up in the Apple store playing with the iPads and iPods. The movie turned out to be pretty good. Upon returning to the dorms, there was another pick-up game of volleyball that left many of us tired.