Cal Grad Heads to Antarctica

Sep 21, 2018

Michael Penn, who received a certification in Comprehensive Special Education from California University of Pennsylvania in 1992, is one of 11 teachers in the United States selected to participate in PolarTREC (Teachers and Researchers Exploring and Collaborating), an educational research experience that partners middle and high school science teachers with academic researchers actively involved in polar science research.

mike penn

Penn is one of five teachers who will travel to Antarctica.

PolarTREC is funded by the National Science Foundation and provides science teachers the opportunity to participate in polar research and work closely with scientists as a pathway to improving science education. 

Penn is a teacher in the gifted and talented education program at Shaler Area Elementary School in the Shaler Area School District, located north of Pittsburgh, Pa. 

For approximately six weeks starting in November 2018, Penn will be working as part of a research team from the University of Wisconsin to install and maintain remote automatic weather stations all over Antarctica. 

Penn and the research team will be based in both McMurdo Station and South Pole Station. 

The automatic weather stations collect information about weather conditions and measurements that are used by meteorologists and climate scientists all over the world. 

Penn’s responsibilities include outreach to students and the public about what he will be doing in order to foster an interest in math and science and general knowledge about Antarctica. 

“I am really looking forward to interacting with our students and teachers through journals and video conferencing and to answer their questions about the AWS project, Antarctica, its climate, geography, animals, how we will get around on ‘The Ice’ and anything else they are curious about,” Penn said.    

Follow Penn’s preparations and expedition