Aaron is a graduate student in the Department of Education where he aims to get a PhD in Math, Science, Technology and Engineering Education (MSTE). His research interests include spatial cognition, learning in virtual environments and knowledge transfer. With a BS in astronomy, Aaron has worked as an Astronomical Technical Assistant for the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) since 1998 and has published many research articles in astronomical journals and given dozens of public lectures aimed at popularizing breaking astronomical discoveries. He continues to work at the AAVSO part-time during his education at Tufts.
It was at the AAVSO that Aaron was first introduced to the Wright Center. When he started at the AAVSO, they had just published Hands-On Astrophysics (HOA), a science curriculum developed via a partnership between the AAVSO and the Wright Center. He subsequently helped organize and conduct teacher training workshops working with HOA materials along with designing new technological tools to work with the HOA curriculum.
In 2005, Aaron created Slacker Astronomy, a blog, audio/video podcast, and wiki. SA's mission is to communicate new astronomical discoveries with a sense of humor and fun, while respecting the intelligence of the audience.
Aaron loves two things about the Wright Center: 1. It's a place where he can bounce ideas off experienced teachers and an interdisciplinary group of professors, and 2. They are not afraid to tell him the truth!