Day in Sigonella:
Barcelona:
Deployment
Visit by local students
One city, three flavors
How to prepare as a parent
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PAGEs 8-9
N A S SIG O N E L L A
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January 22, 2016
Vol. 33 No. 4
Inspiration for the future STEM from expo By MC1 ANTHony d. curtis NAS Sigonella Public Affairs
NAS SIGONELLA, Sicily -- Nearly 200 students at Sigonella Middle/High School have been hard at work throughout the first half of the school year spending time investigating, recording, growing, and learning. Each one with a different project that hits one of the four bases of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). The students began researching in August, and had the opportunity to present their findings at the 2nd Annual STEM Expo in January. “I have three major hopes for the students coming out of this,” said Christine Arnold, Sigonella Middle School science teacher. “First, I want each student to feel empowered to continue to be scientists themselves. Second, for them to walk away with the ability to problem solve, and finally, I hope they learn from each other's projects and they see that STEM is everywhere and they experience it every day.” At the start of the school year, each student chose a focus for their project. Topics ranged from how the sense of smell affects the sense of taste, how much dye is in food, and the effectiveness of color blindness correcting glasses. Seventh grader Emmy McCarthy used the opportunity to research a new product that could help her little brother who is color blind. “My family would be driving around and we’d see a rainbow or pretty sunset and point it out to my little brother and he wouldn’t know what we were pointing at,” explained McCarthy. “So I designed an experiment to test my brother’s vision with and without the glasses.” McCarthy’s brother was only able to correctly identify the color of one of eight balloons without the corrective glasses. With the glasses on, he was able to accurately point out the different colors all eight times. This research helped convince McCarthy’s parents to purchase the glasses to help their son see colors the same way they do. The students of the STEM expo didn’t just have to do research, but they also had to create a board with their research
presented and actually demonstrate their knowledge of the information to the judges. All in all, the students had to prove that they actually knew what they were talking about. The science project designed by McCarthy garnered the award of Best Exhibit at the expo. Awards were presented to students in the middle school and also a separate set of awards in the high school. Some projects have been selected to be presented at a regional science fair in Germany, as part of the Junior Science and Humanities Symposia (JSHS) program. The JSHS is designed to challenge and engage students (grades 9-12) in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM). Individual students compete for scholarships and recognition by presenting the results of their original research efforts before a panel of judges and an audience of their peers. “We’ve had 10 students selected to attend this year’s regional event in Germany,” said Marsha McCauley, Sigonella High School science teacher. “Last year we made up a large component of the regional competition, and this year we plan to make up even more of it.” Students will develop skills to help prepare for undergraduate and graduate pursuits, such as acquiring scientific, technological, engineering, and mathematical knowledge and the ability to use that knowledge to identify issues, acquire new knowledge, and apply the new knowledge to real world STEM-related issues. “For this year’s fair, students were required to conduct independent, original research,” said McCauley. Student Nathan Freeman, one of the students selected to present his project in Germany this year, conducted research on his hamsters. “He has been studying their habits and behaviors for the last year and was invited to give an oral presentation this year.” While only in the second year of the Expo, praise is coming in from around Europe. “We’ve received kudos from other schools and even the district science director for our STEM expo model and our ability to send so many kids to region this year,” said McCauley. “I’m extremely
NAS SIGONELLA - Students from Sigonella Middle/High School present their STEM projects to judges during the 2nd annual STEM Expo, Jan. 13. Students have been working on the projects since the start of the school year. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Tony D. Curtis)
proud of all these young adults from the middle and high school.” STEM EXPO 2016 Winners Middle School: Adreanne Matthias - 1st place Kendall Jackson - 2nd place Kaitlyn Freeman - 3rd place Chloe Sanders - Honorable Mention Martina Raco - Honorable Mention Graham Dennis - Honorable Mention Best of Physics - Danielle Manalo Best of Chemistry - John Miayamoto Best of Life Science - Benjamin Berlin Best of Behavioral Science Sophia Baguilod Best of Engineering - Christian Escolero Best of Earth Science - Matthew Jose Best Use of Scientific Method Rachel Smithgall Best Use of Mathematics Alexander Brandt Most Use of Scientific Research Emma Dillion Most Interesting Project - Malia Puerto Most Creative Project - Anna Griswold Most Unique Project - Brandon Pulido Best Exhibit - Emmy McCarthy Best Presenter - Aleena Manning High School: Nathan Freeman - 1st place Alexandra McKinney - 2nd place High School (cont)
Cameron Camus - 3rd place Zoey Perkins - Honorable Mention Junajoy Frianeza - Honorable Mention Samantha Sanders - Honorable Mention Best of Physics - Rose-Marie Wojtal Best of Chemistry - Caleb Cross Best of Life Science - Daniel Hopkins Best of Behavioral ScienceCaitlin Newman-Sanders Best of Engineering Winston Sappenfield Best of Earth Science - Jesse Woodall Best Use of Scientific Method Ryan Waller Best Use of Mathematics - Brooke Berlin Most Use of Scientific Research Kristiana Wyrick Most Interesting Project - Alex Ogletree Most Creative Project - Marika Wojtal Most Unique Project - Kylen Jones Best Exhibit - William Martinez Best Display - Maile Puerto Students invited to Region JSHS Event: Nathan Freeman - Oral Samantha Sanders - Oral Cameron Camus - Poster Daniel Hopkins - Poster Aaron Jacobs - Poster Ryan Waller - Poster Korley Jones - Poster Munro Manning - Poster Junajoy Frianeza - Poster Maile Puerto - Poster
CNO announces five initiatives to drive sexual assaults to zero From Chief of Naval Operations Public Affairs
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- A line of effort in the recently released "Design to Maintain Maritime Superiority" is to strengthen our Navy team which is composed of active and reserve Sailors, Navy civilians, and families. On Jan. 14 Chief of Naval Operations Admiral John Richardson announced a new set of sexual assault prevention and response initiatives to lower the obstacles to reporting, provide added support to survivors, and prevent revictimization. During the announcement, Richardson told reporters an important element of this effort is to eliminate selfinflicted destructive behavior, sexual assault being among the most egregious. He went on to say sexual harassment and sexual assault have absolutely no place in our Navy and are contrary to our core values. "Eliminating sexual assault requires more than words. Zero-tolerance requires an all-hands effort," said Richardson. Here are the five initiatives CNO announced to help "end the scourge of sexual assault" in our Navy: 1) A Shipmate is not a "bystander." If you see something wrong, do something right. It is every Sailor's responsibility to "step up and step in" to help their shipmate when they observe or become aware of undesired and de-
structive behavior. In 2015, the Navy adopted a new training approach, shifting from traditional lecture-style training to a more dynamic program called "Chart the Course." Chart the Course moves beyond the "bystander" approach and combines scenario-based videos with facilitator-led discussions to achieve an interactive learning experience. The training provides insight on what to do when faced with challenging situations. 2) Establish counselors within the Fleet and Family Support Centers as a resource for victim support. Building on the success we have experienced with deployed resiliency counselors on "big decks," there are potential gains if we are able to replicate the counseling and support provided under the Navy Family Advocacy Program for Sailors impacted by sexual assault. In addition to enhanced care, we expect the availability of these counselors to provide an opportunity to go after the social and structural barriers to male victim reporting. These counselors will provide opportunities to collaborate with local civilian facilities and counselors to ensure we are using every available measure to support our survivors. We are currently determining how to pilot this concept to get a better assessment. 3) Improve our personnel management practices and procedures, following a sexual assault experience, to ensure our Sailors are put in the best position possible to succeed. This includes examining our present detailing
practices so to preclude administrative or management decisions and actions that unintentionally result in the Sailor reliving the sexual assault experience. In addition to the expedited transfer program, this could also include honoring a survivor's request for an expedited discharge, should they desire to leave the Navy. 4) Continue our efforts to educate our Sailors and reduce alcohol abuse in the Navy, particularly binge drinking. The data clearly reflects that alcohol abuse is a factor in most of the Navy's sexual assault cases. We need to ensure that our accountability processes and options, administrative and otherwise, provide the tools we need to effectively deal with incidents where alcohol abuse has been established. 5) Better utilize technology to remove cultural barriers and stigma associated with reporting a sexual assault or seeking advice and counsel. We are currently exploring a number of computer applications piloted at universities. We expect to be able to begin introducing a "Navy version" within the year. CNO concluded his discussion by thanking Congress for the focus, attention, and assistance they have provided on this issue and the commitment to eliminate sexual assault. "I want to continue to confront this scourge in our workforce. Until we go to zero we can never be satisfied."