Astro Camp (Now Star Camp) in Ogden, Utah to Host an Open House to Celebrate 35 Years. AstroCamp Over the Years in Photos. Mission.io Impresses the New York Times Opinion Writer. Imaginairum Theater.

Hello Space EdVenturers,

The combined campus of Central Elementary School and the Christa McAuliffe Space Center isn't the only double space center and school in Utah. The Ogden School District has its own AstroCamp combined with Odyssey Elementary School in Ogden. AstroCamp started around the same time I created the Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center in 1990. It was founded by Ed and Lois Douglas.

Lois and Ed Douglas

AstroCamp was housed in a building that was once a part of the state school for the blind. It had classrooms and an entire floor of dorm rooms. In 2005, it was decided to move AstroCamp into the soon-to-be-built Odyssey Elementary School. Ed and Lois met with the school's architects to design the school and especially the AstroCamp portion of the campus. The camp needed classrooms, a space shuttle simulator, a mission control area, and, of course, sleeping accommodations. AstroCamp offers overnight summer space camps. In the end, it was decided to use the school's classrooms for sleeping rooms during the summer months.

Is it a coincidence that Utah has these two prodigious programs that mirror each other in scope and design? Both started at the same time. Both are located in Title I elementary schools. Both are operated by public school districts. Both the pride of their communities. Strange how things turn out the way they do.

AstroCamp and the Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center sponsored joint summer space camps for many years. The campers started at AstroCamp on a Monday for their two-night camp. They were bused to us in Pleasant Grove on Wednesday for our two-night camp. It was a good partnership that gave Utah's students the best space camp experience anyone could have.


All of that was decades ago. The Space Center celebrated its 35th anniversary on November 8, 2025. Astrocamp will celebrate its 35th anniversary on June 18. They are hosting a special open house to celebrate the event. The details are at the top of this post. All of you are invited to attend, especially you old-timers who remember doing the Astrocamp/Space Center joint summer camps, to help celebrate this unique space education program in Utah.

Mr. Williamson

This is Ed Douglas's Facebook Post Regarding the Anniversary

     June 18, 2026, marks the 35th Anniversary of the first summer space camp that Lois and I held for our newly created Astro Camp program, which has now transitioned into the Star Camp program. Never, in our wildest dreams, would we have imagined our program would reach this milestone and touch so many lives, including ours, along the way. To celebrate, an event is being organized on June 19, 2026, from 6 - 8 pm at the Utah Military Academy located at 5120 S. 1050 W. in Riverdale, Utah.  Lois and I will be there and would absolutely love to see and visit with as many of you as possible during the event. We understand many won't be able to make it. If you are one of those, we'd still love to have you DM and let us know what you are doing and what is happening in your life.
     Thank you all for blessing our lives for so many years. Each of you helped turn a program into a family; an idea into something magical. Thought you might like a look back on 35 years; enjoy the photos!

AstroCamp Over the Years in Photos. 1991 to 2026


The Old Astrocamp: 1991 - 2007

The New Astrocamp (Star Camp) at Odyssey Elementary School, in the Ogden City School District

Utah's Mission.io Intrigues the Skeptical New York Times Opinion Writer

 

     Some exciting news to share regarding our friends at Mission.io. Last week, the New York Times Opinion section ran a scathing hit piece on how K-12 educational technology has gone wrong, and they pulled out Mission.io as the rare exception. 
It is one of the most validating pieces of writing about Mission.io's work and a painfully honest critique of the education industry. 

The following statement, taken from the New York Times piece, summarizes the writer's argument in a single sentence.

"This has been the greatest blunder in the past decade of K-12 education: the decision to give every child a personal computer and to gamify everything from standardized test preparation to recess."

Here are the cliffnotes: https://mission.io/blog/nyt-edtech-mission-io-exception\

Imaginarium Theater

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