VOLUME33 VOLUME ISSUE41 41 ISSUE
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Fall Festival Preview OCTOBER 14 - OCTOBER 20, 2022
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PREPARING FOR BLAST OFF
Lisa Fontaine-Dorsey, the Gifted Resource and STEAM Lab teacher at Dr. N.H. Jones, Aarya Seevaratnam, 11 and Anakan Gopalan, 11. Carla Reedy, the Biotechnology teacher at North Marion High School, left, connects on a laptop with Julia Wolfenbarger, a scientist, as Wolfenbarger assists students from Dr. N.H. Jones Elementary to load their mini-lab experiment for the International Space Station in a Microsoft virtual meeting in the Biotechnology Lab at North Marion High School in Citra on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 [Bruce Ackerman/ Ocala Gazette] 2022.
Anakan Gopalan, 11, second from left, and Aarya Seevaratnam, 11, right, of Dr. N.H. Jones Elementary, load their mini-lab experiment for the International Space Station as Lisa Fontaine-Dorsey, the Gifted Resource and STEAM Lab teacher at Dr. N.H. Jones, second from right, looks on with Carla Reedy, the Biotechnology Lab teacher at North Marion High School, as they get some assistance from a scientist in a Microsoft virtual meeting in the Biotechnology Lab at North Marion High School in Citra on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2022.
Students prepare experiment for launch to International Space Station. By Caroline Brauchler caroline@ocalagazette.com
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everal Marion County students made final preparations on Wednesday, Oct. 12 to see their very own experiment blast off into space on Nov. 15 for testing by astronauts on the International Space Station. As a part of the Student Spaceflight Experiment Program (SSEP), students from Dr. N. H. Jones Elementary School won a competition to create a hypothesis that will be tested by astronauts on the ISS. The experiment poses the question of what effect microgravity will have on the amount of ethanol produced by yeast. Former Dr. N. H. Jones students Aarya Seevaratnam and Anakan Gopalan first designed and implemented the winning experiment last year while in fifth grade under the supervision
of teacher Lisa Dorsey. Students from North Marion High School, Jacob Ridinger and Dalton Gentilman, were also part of the team under the supervision of teacher Dee Reedy. On Wednesday, the younger students joined their project counterparts at NMHS to prepare and load the mini-lab experiment, which will launch on from the Kennedy Space Center on a SpaceX rocket through SSEP. The SSEP is a program of the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE) in the U.S. and the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Space Education internationally. It is enabled through a strategic partnership with Nanoracks LLC, which is working with NASA under a Space Act Agreement as part of the utilization of the International Space Station as a National Laboratory, according to SSEP. “It was the most challenging thing
I’ve ever done as a teacher, and I’m sure it was the most challenging thing the students have done,” Dorsey said. “They’re sending something to the ISS, like, who does that? We do that.” The students must fit their experiment into a small tube that is 7 inches long and 2.5 inches wide. This tube will then be sent up to the ISS where astronauts will conduct the experiment to see how microgravity affects the fermentation of yeast. The project will be in orbit for six to eight weeks before returning back to Earth, and in the meantime the students will conduct the same experiment on Earth as a control. They will then compare the results from both tests and analyze them to finish the project, Dorsey said. “They are just really excited about learning about science and possibly space,” Dorsey said. “There’s so much opportunity, especially in Florida with
the space program here.” Dorsey said this project has given her students experience with the scientific method that is invaluable and doesn’t happen in a regular classroom. The students had to run trials and alter their research question based on those results, she said. “We’ve learned that the scientific process is nothing like a science fair project because nothing ever goes right,” she said. “It took us 100 trials, no joke, to get an answer.” Dorsey said her and her students’ excitement is palpable, and they can’t wait to see all of their hard work pay off, both on launch day and when the experiment is complete several weeks later. “Perseverance—that’s what they learn,” Dorsey said. “It really does take a lot of hard work and you really do have to keep trying.”
A round of applause for local arts heroes By Ocala Gazette Staff
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hose who attended the Marion Cultural Alliance’s (MCA) festive and colorful “Alice in Wonderland”-themed Applaud the Arts gala, which took over the Reilly Arts Center on Saturday night, did their best not to be late for an important date. MCA’s 15th annual Applaud the Arts event gathered arts movers and shakers to recognize individuals who went above and beyond to strengthen the area’s arts community. This was the sixth year that awards were presented in the categories of service, arts education and vision. Guests and arts leaders dressed up as characters such as Alice, the Red Queen and the Mad Hatter as they convened to celebrate and pay respects to the people who worked hard to build connections and reach people all ages.
The following locals received awards of distinction for making a difference for those who need it most and improving lives through the arts.
SERVICE AWARD: Dr. Joanne Cornell-Ohlman
This award recognizes an exceptional individual for dedicated volunteerism in the arts and contribution to the arts community as a whole. Dr. Joanne Cornell-Ohlman is a psychologist who spends her professional and personal time fostering personal growth and strengthening bonds through creativity. As the director of the Fort King Presbyterian Church H.O.P.E. House, she fosters an inclusive and accessible vibe while sparking connections through creativity, healing workshops, study and shared experience. The H.O.P.E. House
is currently home to the comprehensive monthlong arts, culture and history series, “The Water and Wildlife of the Ocklawaha River,” which offers free lectures and exhibits and the live creation of a new mural. “We are paying homage and bringing awareness to the river, underscoring its colorful history and potential to nourish the ecosystem along with our local economy,” Ohlman said. As a clinical psychologist, Cornell-Ohlman has served the Ocala Community for 34 years, specializing in working with children, adolescents and families. She has an undergraduate background in art and psychology, a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Kentucky and an internship and post-doctorate work at the University of Florida. In her private practice and See Applaud, page A3
Lisa Midgett of the Marion Cultural Alliance, left, speaks to people as Jay Baillie, right, also of the Marion Cultural Alliance, looks on during the MCA Applaud The Arts at the NOMA Black Box at the Reilly Arts Center in Ocala on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2022.
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