NASA Programs For Virginia Students
In 1987, a joint congressional study panel met to address issues. Most notable of them was a shortage of workers prepared for a high-tech workforce and a decline in scholastic achievement.
For nearly 40 years, NASA has been doing educational programs. What will students learn in these programs?
What is the Virginia Space Grant Consortium?
The VSGC is a NASA- supported coalition of universities, state agencies, and aerospace interests that coordinates and develops STEM education initiatives for Virginia students. VGSC acts as an “umbrella organization” dedicated to coordinating and developing aerospace related interests in Virginia, with funding from NASA.
About the Programs
10th grade
Virginia Space Coast Scholars is a free program for sophomores that focuses on STEM concepts essential to NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. The program includes an online course with five modules running from November to March. Top students will likely be invited to a seven-day long residential academy at NASA Wallops on the Eastern Shore (located just inland of Chincoteague Island). In this seven-day residential academy, students will engage with NASA professionals and explore current missions. Applications are due by October 26, 2025.
11th and 12th grade
Virginia Aerospace Science and Technology Scholars (VASTS) zeroes in on NASA’s human space missions, and the journey from the Moon and to Mars. Students will learn from NASA experts how to design space missions. Students learn a broad range of engineering, math and technology (STEM) skills. Top students will get to go to an all-expense paid seven day residential summer academy at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA (near Virginia Beach). Coursework will go from December to May and consists of seven lessons and a final project. Applications are due on Oct 24, 2025 and to apply, you must be a junior or senior, a Virginia resident, US citizen, Internet access, and a minimum GPA of 2.7.
Virginia Earth System Science Scholars
The VESSS program challenges students to become part of the solution to one of the most significant issues faced by society- climate change. While working with the world’s leading authorities on climate change, the course develops skills across a range of STEM topics. During the summer academy, at NASA’s Langley Research Center, the students will talk with accomplished guest speakers, take facility tours, and be mentored by NASA scientists and engineers. The program is free for select students. The online portion is a free, transferable, four-credit GOL 105 dual-enrollment course offered through Virginia Peninsula Community College (VPCC). Topics include sea-level rise, glacial melt, global temperature change and the causes of these changes. Applications are open from August 15 to October 26, 2025.
