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2 July 2025
New AAS Partnership Connects Astronomers with Community Colleges
The American Astronomical Society (AAS), the SETI Institute, and the NASA Community College Network (NCCN) have teamed up to provide an exciting and impactful program that brings top astronomy researchers into the classrooms of community colleges around the United States.
The Harlow Shapley Visiting Lectureship Program is a tradition for the AAS. The program, which has a history dating back to the 1950s, supports a scientist to give a series of astronomy-themed lectures at a college or university, coupled with a public talk to the local community. Now, the AAS has partnered with the NCCN team to broaden the impact of the Shapley lectureship program to community colleges, making use of NCCN’s existing network of 260 college instructors across 44 states and 120 participating subject matter experts to “matchmake” community colleges with astronomers.
Developed and led by the SETI Institute, the NCCN has supported the teaching of astronomy at community college since 2020. Community colleges serve a vital role in STEM education, with a third of their students being first-generation college attendees and 64% being part-time students working jobs and raising families. Factor in that up to 40% of students taking introductory astronomy courses nationally each year do so at a community college, and the motivation behind NCCN and the initiatives of the AAS become clear.
“Getting community college instructors and subject matter experts together is the core mission of NCCN,” said Dr. Simon Steel, Deputy Director of the Carl Sagan Center at the SETI Institute and PI for NCCN. “In this world of virtual presentations and meetings, the AAS's Shapley lectureship program gives colleges a real, in-person scientist to talk to and learn from, maximizing impact, enjoyment, and inspiration!”
In 2024, the pilot collaboration between NCCN and the AAS matched two community colleges — Chattanooga State Community College in Tennessee and Modesto Junior College in California — with AAS astronomers from University of Virginia and Stanford University. In 2025, nine AAS astronomers are engaging with 14 community colleges in Wyoming, Illinois, Arizona, Texas, California, and Maryland to present their science and their stories to students, staff, and the public.
The Shapley lectureship program is a true collaboration between each college and the AAS. The college agrees to host the visiting scientist’s public talk, arranges for their presentation to an astronomy class, coordinates meetings between the visiting astronomer and college faculty and administration, and handles local press and publicity. The AAS identifies an appropriate visiting scientist and brings them to the college, fully funding their travel and expenses.
Dr. Tom Rice, AAS Education Program Manager and AAS lead on the partnership with NCCN, stated, “The mission of the American Astronomical Society is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community. The AAS's Harlow Shapley Visiting Lectureship Program represents one of the most impactful ways that astronomers can share our scientific understanding with the widest possible audience, and I am very proud that we have partnered with SETI and NASA to bring astronomers to their network of community colleges.”
The lectureship program is named for astronomer Harlow Shapley (1885-1972), whose work pioneered our understanding of the size of the Milky Way, identifying the true location of the Sun in our galaxy’s outer disk and not at the center of the galaxy as was believed at the time. Shapley was also the first astronomer to talk about habitable zones, the regions around the Sun and other stars where liquid water, a prerequisite for life as we know it, can persist.
Contacts
Founded in 1984, the SETI Institute is a non-profit, multi-disciplinary research and education organization whose mission is to lead humanity’s quest to understand the origins and prevalence of life and intelligence in the universe and share that knowledge with the world. Our research encompasses the physical and biological sciences and leverages data analytics, machine learning, and advanced signal detection technologies. The SETI Institute is a distinguished research partner for industry, academia, and government agencies, including NASA and the National Science Foundation.
The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is a major international organization of professional astronomers, astronomy educators, and amateur astronomers. Its membership of approximately 8,000 also includes physicists, geologists, engineers, and others whose interests lie within the broad spectrum of subjects now comprising the astronomical sciences. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meetings, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.