Nichole Boyette is the Aerospace Educator for Loudoun County Public Schools. This unique position is a joint partnership between the Loudoun County Public School District and the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. Her job is to provide professional development to teachers, field trips to students, and educational outreach throughout Loudoun County and the surrounding districts, including Fairfax County Public Schools. As the COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges for many guests and school groups, preventing them from experiencing the museum in person, Nichole has worked tirelessly with the Education Team at the National Air and Space Museum to create virtual field trips - bringing the museum into the homes people nationwide! Before she became the Aerospace Educator, Nichole was an Instructional Facilitator of Technology at Liberty Elementary School. At Liberty, Nichole created dynamic lessons, alongside her incredible teachers, and co-taught each class (grades K-5) on a bi-weekly basis to ensure that each of the 1,100 students in the school had an equitable experience with technology. She worked to push the boundaries of how technology is used in schools by bringing curriculum to life using coding, STEM, 3D printing, drones, robotics, digital platforms, web design, and more. She provided professional development to staff and teachers in these areas and to other schools in the county, state, and nation. Nichole has always had a passion for STEM education and loved providing girls in grades 2-5 the experiences of joining the GEMS Club. The afterschool GEMS (Girls Excelling in Math and Science) club highlights different STEM career fields and fun STEM challenges to encourage the girls to explore the different STEM options in their futures. She can't wait to learn everything she can about NASA, the Solar System, the future of space travel, and STEM as a Solar System Ambassador!