Space Camp: Student Reflections

Space Camp for Interested Visually Impaired Students

Blog Post By: 

Pam Arbeiter, Regional Field Services Specialist – Northeast Kansas

KS Students: Kimberly Herrick, Tyler Kitchengs, Evan Klamm, & Zoe Murrow

October 18, 2022

Thanks to the generosity of the KC Blind All Stars Foundation, four high school seniors from Kansas recently returned from Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama. They spent the week with a team of students from across the United States and around the world.  Their team included participants from Belgium, Costa Rica, Illinois, New Jersey, Texas, Missouri and Kansas. They were busy from morning until night, learning about space exploration, early space missions, and how NASA partners with other space agencies around the world. They pushed themselves to participate in missions and training via simulations the same way astronauts would.  Students learned how to communicate their needs to others, to push themselves outside of their comfort zone, and to rely on their teammates. Students who were blind or had low vision from across the globe learned about space in a hands-on way. The following are thoughts & impressions from Kansas students about Space Camp located at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Alabama.  These students represent the towns of Emporia, Olathe, Blue Valley & Topeka. 

Kimberly Herrick:

Space camp was a wonderful experience. I enjoyed my time there from the moonwalk to graduation. It has shown me so many possibilities about space and astronomy. Our group had several missions simulated throughout the week. It’s a place I would definitely go back too.

Tyler Kitchengs:

My experience at space camp was great. It was a lot of fun meeting new people from around the world. It was also a lot of fun doing the missions. The food was great. The graduation ceremony was like none that I have ever seen before. I’m definitely willing to go back for the aviation challenge or for Space Camp in general

Evan Klamm: 

I thought Space Camp was pretty good. I would recommend it to other people. Most of the activities are fun. The only activity that was hard was trying to stand on a pamper pole. I learned what being in a spaceship feels like. My favorite part was repairing a satellite.

Zoe Murrow: 

My experience at the 2022 Space camp was memorable. Here are a few things I got to experience. First, I climbed a 40 foot high pole that had little round handles leading to the top. It was my first time doing this kind of challenge and I was able to make it to the top. Another experience I enjoyed was doing the missions. Each mission we all got to experience different roles on how space works for different positions. We learned about the different kinds of scenarios that may happen in space and what to do to fix it. Lastly, I met lots of new friends from many different states and countries. I really enjoyed trading pins with people as a way of remembering each other. I am so incredibly thankful that I was chosen as one of the four Kansas students. It is something I will remember forever.

Anyone interested in learning more about the SCIVIS program at Space Camp can visit the website: http://www.scivis.org/.