Celebrating and Recognizing Highly Qualified STEM Educators

Enduring partnership between STEM Educator Ambassadors and the National STEM Academy’s education programs is our highest priority. We deeply value and greatly appreciate our STEM Educator Ambassador’s experience, expertise, leadership and time. Our distinguished STEM Ambassadors support the many programs hosted by the National STEM Academy while making connections with fellow educators, families, and communities. These partnerships include but are not limited to participation in: virtual, on-site, or outreach STEM programming, volunteerism for programs, projects, and special events, and teaching summer camps and STEM Labs, professional development workshops and Educator STEM Conferences.

Meet Our Ambassadors

Dawn Hardy

NSA Ambassador

Mrs. Dawn Hardy has been a teacher since 1994 and has a Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education and a Master's degree in Elementary Math. Mrs. Hardy has been participating and volunteering for the National STEM Academy and the Educator Resource Center since 2008. She has taught many summer camps, professional development workshops, and special event classes for the National STEM Academy. Mrs. Hardy exemplifies the duties of the STEM Educator Ambassador program and has been instrumental in surpassing the goals of the STEM Educator Ambassador Program.

Belynda Songer

NSA Ambassador

Belynda is a Georgia certified Middle and High school science teacher in the Middle Georgia area in Engineering/Technology, Broad Field Science, SPED, Science, and Art. her educations includes a BA in Education Science, an MS in Curriculum and Instruction and a NASA Endeavor STEM certificate. Her passion is teaching students and teachers in the the field of STEM and STEAM in her own classroom and the classroom at the Educator Resource Center and the National STEM Academy. She also supports NASA Education via curriculum creation and storytelling.

Kimberly Barkmeyer

NSA Ambassador

Kimberly Barkmeyer has been teaching for 9 years in grades 3 and 5. She has a bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Development. She currently teachers 5th grade Science in Peach County. Kimberly uses what she learns from workshops with the National STEM Academy to help teachers in her school integrate science and STEM into their projects. She assisted in coordinating her school's first STEAM Day, taught professional development classes on Teacher Clarity, and, with the help of her students, successfully hatched and raised 4 chickens. This yea she will be instructing her first workshop for the Educator Resource Center's STEM workshop series.

Becky Busby

NSA Ambassador

Becky Busby has dedicated her teaching career to the Liberty County School System for 24 years. In her current position as a Gifted Resource Teacher, she works with kindergarten through fifth grade gifted students. Mrs. Busby was selected to partner with Space Center Houston and NASA to embark on the Year in Space mission to bring NASA resources and STEM education to Georgia. Mrs. Busby was recently named Space Station Explorer Exceptional Educator Award recipient from ISS National Laboratory for her work with inspiring students to embrace STEM opportunities beyond the classroom. The recognition of being selected to participate in the National STEM Academy STME Educator Ambassador Program will help Mrs. Busby to reach many more students and educators across Georgia.