February 22, 2022
Margaret Baguio, the program manager for education and outreach at The University of Texas at Austin’s Center for Space Research (CSR) and the NASA Texas Space Grant Consortium (TSGC), was selected to receive the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM) for 2022.
The award is the highest national honor given to individuals and organizations for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) outreach mentoring programs, and is administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF) on behalf of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).
Baguio is one of only twelve individuals selected for the award this year, along with three organizations. Presidential Awardees receive a certificate signed by the President of the United States, a $10,000 award from NSF and an invitation to the White House. This year’s award ceremony was held virtually.
In partnership with UT CSR, TSGC and NASA, Baguio has been providing long-term professional development for over 20 years through programs such as the LiftOff Summer Institute, the NASA Summer of Innovation, and Space Vision.
“For over 20 years, thousands of educators and students have experienced the impact of programs such as the LiftOff Summer Institute and the NASA STEM Enhancement in Earth and Space Science high school internship which ignite interest in space exploration and STEM,” Baguio wrote for the award ceremony. “This award pays tribute to mentors like me who touch lives, provide advice, offer support, and encourage underrepresented and underserved youth to reach for the stars.”
The LiftOff Summer Institute, which had its origins in Texas, typically correlates with current NASA missions and is held at NASA-JSC each summer. Educators who are selected from across the country have the opportunity to get an insider’s look at mission control, robotics labs, and even visit the lab where Apollo moon rocks are housed, along with hearing expert speakers and participating in a related hands-on activity. Participants trained in programs like LiftOff share the curriculum with over 130,000 students annually and train an additional 1,250 educators.
Under Baguio’s leadership, she has also helped over 11,000 underrepresented students excel in STEM experiences with organizations like the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Rio Grande Valley Science Association, Minority Girls in Science, NASA Family Science Nights, and the NASA STEM Enhancement in Earth and Space Science (SEESS) high school intern program, which is now recruiting for its sixth year running.
She said what is most rewarding about working in a field like this is hearing about the successes of former students and educators who have benefited from the programming and mentorship.
“Hearing that they are achieving their goals is the most rewarding part of this job,” said Baguio. “We’ve helped students from so many different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds including homeless youth, students of migrant farmers, and adolescents underrepresented in STEM, and it’s just so rewarding to hear their stories of success.”
Baguio said she came to UT Austin’s Center for Space Research in a round-about way. She began her career working at the Texas Cooperative Extension Service where she eventually applied for and received a grant to teach science and literacy in Austin’s inner city. These hands-on after school programs were so successful that they still exist today. And it was through these programs that Baguio was introduced to the TSGC where she began a summer space camp program and then was eventually hired at CSR to create outreach programs for the NASA GRACE mission.
“I wanted to do a space camp for young people of unrepresented populations. The program became so popular that eventually half were scholarship participants and the other half were paying customers. We took students to the NASA Johnson Space Center where they got to see and relate to engineers and scientists who look like them,” said Baguio. “I was fortunate to have a great mentor myself growing up and because of that, I feel like giving back is so important. I’m humbled and honored to have been selected for this award that recognizes this work.”
Baguio holds a B.S. in education from Texas State University and an M.S. in education from the University of Houston. She has received several honors and awards for her work including the national Alan Shepard Technology in Education Award, Texas Girls Collaborative Program Mission Women in STEM Mentor Award, the My NASA Data Group Achievement Award and the National Space Foundation Teacher Liaison.
