Canyon Grove Academy's Discovery Space Center Changes its Name and Logo. Meet the New Co-Director Taking Maeson Busk's Place. Was Maeson Busk the First Space EdVenturer to Defect to Disney? Possible Proof he Wasn't. The Imaginarium.

Reality's Edge Log

     The Discovery Space Center at Canyon Grove Academy has changed its name to Reality's Edge Space Simulations (RESS).  A name change was necessary to avoid confusion between the Telos Discovery Space Center at the Canyon Grove Discovery Space Center.  Reality's Edge continues its partnership with the Telos Discovery Space Center.
     The new name was suggested by Sofia Felix, a RESS volunteer.  Caleb Harrison designed the logo (above).

   
     Let's take a moment to acquaint ourselves with the five Space EdVentures locations in Utah County.

The Christa McAuliffe Space Center (CMSC); the granddaddy of them all located in Pleasant Grove. Affiliated with the Alpine School District.  

Starships: Magellan, Odyssey, Phoenix, Galileo

Renaissance Space Academy (RSA) located in Lehi

Affiliated with Renaissance Academy, a public K-8 charter school.

Starships: Voyager, Nighthawk

The Lion's Gate Center (LGC) located in Saratoga Springs 

Affiliated with Lakeview Academy, a public K-9 charter school.

Starships: Leo, Apollo, Artemis

 The Telos Discovery Space Center (TDSC) located Orem 

Affiliated with TelosU and Telos Academy

Starships: Hyperion

Reality's Edge (RESS) located in Pleasant Grove

Affiliated with Canyon Grove Academy a public K-6 charter school.

Starships: Everest, Dauntless, Valiant   

Meet Caleb Harrison, Reality's Edge new Co-Director

Caleb being bid farewell by Maeson Busk and a Welcome by Sydney Brown

     Maeson Busk's dramatic temporary defection to Disney World left a management opening at Reality's Edge.  Caleb Harrison was hired to fill that opening. Caleb and Sydney Brown will be co-directors of the center. 

     Caleb is 23 years old and is trained in graphic design and marketing.  He was a camper at the Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center back in the day and is excited to reenter the Space EdVenturing world by joining the RESS team. 

       

Could This be Brandon Wright Outside The Troubadour's Top Secret West Coast Bureau?  

     The Troubadour's west coast office's exterior camera took this picture of someone who looks very familiar to many in the Space EdVenturing community. Using Chinese face recognition technology the security software identified the person with 60% probability as Brandon Wright, a long time Space EdVenturer who dropped off the radar some time ago.

     The Troubadour Tavern at Disneyland appears, on the surface, to be your average outdoor eatery with a medieval theme.  Guests enjoy their bratwurst on brioche rolls with bacon, sauerkraut and pretzel bites with cheesy sauce with kids' snacks and soft drinks under a pavilion-style tent.

     Secretly, the Troubadour Tavern operates as The Troubadour's west coast bureau. We all know that Disneyland is the Happiest Place on Earth with the Space Centers coming in second.  What better way to keep an eye on your competition than to plant your spies right in the heart of the Magic Kingdom.  From our "Tavern", our cashiers, waiting staff and cooks watch and learn.... watch and learn.... always looking for ways to improve our programs until one day that coveted title of Happiest Place on Earth is ours.

     The sighting alert came right through to my phone at Renaissance Academy while I was teaching my 6th grade history class.  There was a "ping" just as I was describing ancient Roman outdoor toilets. I excused myself, stepped out of the classroom, and called the bureau chief. "Step away from the cash register for a minute and look for someone in a black t-shirt with dark glasses. It is a possible Brandon Wright sighting." 

     There was a pause. Over the line I could hear a disgruntled customer complaining his cheesy sauce was too clumpy. A minute later she returned to the phone. "Nobody matching that description around the perimeter," she responded. I told her to keep a eye out and give the customer another order of cheesy sauce with our compliments.  

     Two Years ago Brandon disappeared from the Lions Gate Center. Nathan King stepped in to fill his shoes. The official statement from Lions Gate said he had taken a sudden sabbatical and it was of "undetermined length".  Perhaps it was something more sinister.

Out of fear of losing its crown as "Happiest Place on Earth" to the space centers, did Disney pull a North Korea maneuver and kidnap Brandon in hopes of extracting his knowledge of simulations and simulator based experiential education?  

     If this was Brandon, then the question to be asked is, "Was Brandon Wright Turned? Was he brainwashed and programmed to work for DUD (Disney Undercover Department)?

     The Troubadour advises all Space EdVenture centers to be on the lookout for someone matching the description of Brandon Wright. Look for someone suspiciously hanging around the center or perhaps chatting with the employees or volunteers, or someone digging through the dumpster for bits of intelligence which could further Disney's cause.      

     Of course this could all be speculation. Perhaps this wasn't Brandon. We may never know. But if this was Brandon it would make sense he would be seen near the Troubadour Tavern possibly reminiscing in nostalgia about the time of Great Expansion when the first new colony fleets left for the schools of the galaxy. 

Imaginarium

 

 

Goodbye Titan, Hello Nighthawk. A Simulator is Renamed.The Nighthawk has a Bar Mitzvah Complete with New Set Directors and is Welcomed into the Fleet. The CMSC to be on French Television: "Fantastique! Quel honneur". From the Archives: Preparing for Summer Camp 2003 with Historical Photos. Theater Imaginarium.

The Nighthawk at Renaissance Space Academy

     The Space Academy at Renaissance is pleased to announce a renaming of the Titan.  As many of you Space EdVenturers know, the Titan is a mobile simulator owned by InfiniD Learning and on permanent loan to the Space Academy.  With that reassignment, and the simulators new purpose to act as a reconnaissance in and out strike ship within the Farpoint universe, Bracken Funk felt the ship needed a new name.  There were many discussions along with many suggestions but in the end Nighthawk seemed to be the best fit. It is a name that speaks the little ship's purpose. 

   

Spencer Baird and Jensen Caldwell Named as Nighthawk's Set Directors. The Nighthawk has a Bar Mitzvah and is Welcomed into the Space EdVentures Fleet. No More "Little Ship that Could" Jokes Allowed (although it will still have to join the Galileo as the Last Ships in the all Fleet Parades)

Jensen and Spencer take their new position very seriously

     
     In addition to the renaming, the Nighthawk also joined the big simulators in the Space EdVentures Fleet by having its Bar Mitzvah which concluded with the naming of the simulators new Set Directors.  Welcome Jensen Caldwell and Spencer Baird as real honest to goodness Set Directors.  They have the unenviable task of getting the ship ready for service as a Terran Space Command special forces surgical strike and stealth ship (hence their stern expressions in the photo above).  

    Spencer and Jensen have been with the Space Academy for a few years now. Both are flight directors in their own right and bi-center employees. In addition to his duties at the Academy, Jensen is a Hyperion flight director at the Telos Discovery Space Center. Spencer is a Level II flight director working at both the Discovery Canyon Grove Center and the Space Academy. 

     Renaissance installed exterior electrical plugs and internet access for the Nighthawk last week opening the door to the Nighthawk's official launch on March 1.  The launch ceremony will include a modest speech by Mr. Bracken Funk chosen for the occasion because I used my only good speech at the Utah County Person of the Year program two weeks back. An opened jug of Tampico simulated orange drink will be hurled at the ship from a safe distance (to avoid splashback) by yours truly followed by the tossing of glitter obtained from the school's art room (that part of the celebration may be canceled if we can't find someone willing to clean up the glitter from the playground).  Refreshments of WalMart glazed doughnuts and Gogurts will be on hand; a symbolic and honored gesture to the first Voyager and something longtime Space Center campers will appreciate. 

     Spencer and Jensen have much to do to prepare the ship.  They may need a helping hand or two if you've got a love for the little ships in the fleet. 

Mr. Williamson 

Le Centre Spatial à la Télévision Française

Translation: Great News! The Christa McAuliffe Space Center is to be Featured on French Television

Tabitha, having served an LDS mission to France, was the perfect person
to interview.

     A few months ago James Porter was notified that the French broadcasting group FLAIR was in the United States doing a documentary on the American space program and wanted to visit the CMSC to document the role experiential learning has in preparing the next generation of space explorers.  

     Flair Production is currently developing two documentary films that deal with the American moon conquest, new space technologies as well as  American space exploration.  The CMSC is to be included in the series.

     Mr. Porter said, "It was nice to be able to spread the message of the effectiveness of simulated learning to inspire and challenge the next generation of explorers."

Central Elementary students provided the crew for the mission filming on the Magellan

      Flair Production is a film production company headquartered in Paris, France. They produce and create a variety of content. This promotional video is from their website:

Flair Production - Bande Démo - Janvier 2016 from Flair Production on Vimeo.

From the Space Center's Historical Archives, The Space Center Journal. The 2003 Summer Camp Schedule. 

March 3, 2003 

A Young Camper with the "Happy Bucket"  Doesn't that bring back memories?

Hello Troops,
We are into March. The phone will start ringing off the hook for summer camp registration forms. The emails from the our web site will cascade in. This summer may prove to be our busiest yet - even with a national recession. That proves a couple of things. You can't beat the equation of quality and price, and parent's will still spend money on their kids in any type of economy. Those of you below the age of 18 should take a minute and thank your parents for the money they've spent on you over your short life span. Sometimes going without things themselves. Showing gratitude will never go out of style and is always 
appreciated. 

The Voyager's Security Ready for Anything

The Voyager's Communications Officer Decoding a message

I'm going to bullet several things in the rest of this Journal.

Summer schedule: 

Our summer schedule will be posted this week. There will be flights from the second week of June through the last week of July. We will be closed the first week of June and the first two weeks of August. Regular overnighters will begin the third week of August. We will also 
be closed the first week of July. I'm reducing the number of students this summer because of the school will be undergoing extensive construction. The school will look like a nuclear blast zone! In addition to the reduction of students I'm also going to reduce the time at camp. 

The Voyager's Captain and First Officer

Each week we will offer one overnight mission and one extended overnight mission. 

Extended overnight mission:
Begins Tuesday evening at 7:00 P.M. with 42 students just like a regular overnight mission
and continues to 9:45 A.M. Wednesday morning. At 10:00 A.M. I bus the 42 campers to Salt Lake City for an extended activity at Clark Planetarium. At Clark they will get an Imax show, Planetarium show, and time to tour the exhibits. We will leave Clark at 2:00 P.M. arriving back at the Space Center at 3:00 P.M. At 3:00 P.M. we begin a second rotation with a supper break from 5:30 to 6:00 P.M. The rotation will end at 8:30 P.M. We go swimming from 8:30 to 10:00 P.M. at Orem Rec Center.  We get back to the Space Center at 10:30 P.M. for a snack and bed. 

The stress is too much for the Voyager's captain

The campers get up at 7:30 A.M. on Thursday morning, eat a quick breakfast and load the simulators for a short 2 and 1/2 hour mission that ends at 10:30 A.M. We do a closing survey and points from 10:30 to 11:00 A.M. The camp ends at 11:00 A.M. on Thursday. 

Flight Directors - you will need to have a new 5 hour overnight mission ready and then also be ready with a private mission for the short rotation on Thursdays. 

The armed Voyager First Officer writing an update to Starbase

Another thing to consider is food. This summer Aleta and Bill will not be available to cook for us. This new schedule will make the meals easier. On day one they come to the Center at 7:00 P.M. so no need for supper. That night they get ice cream like any other overnight 
mission. Breakfast on day 2 is the usual for overnighters. We will pack sack lunches for the kids to eat at Clark in Salt Lake. That won't be a hassle. Supper on Day 2 will be pizza and pop or milk. Breakfast on Day 3 will be fruit, cereal, milk/juice, yogurt, and donuts. They leave at 11:00 A.M. so no need for a second lunch.

Staff hours will be:
Day 1: 6:15 P.M. to 11:15 P.M. (5 hours)
Day 2: 7:30 A.M. to 10:00 A.M. (2.5 hours) Staff will be off until 2:45 P.M.  2:45 P.M. to 8:30 P.M. (5.75 hours)
Day 3: 7:30 A.M. to 11:00 A.M. (3.5 hours) 
Total hours for staff per camp: 16.25 hours. 

Even though we won't make as much money on these reduced camps the stress level will be lower. 

Odyssey campers

Overnight Camps:

Regular overnight camps will be held from Friday evening to Saturday morning at 10:00 A.M. There will be no camps or private missions on Mondays. That gives each of us
Sundays and Mondays off - 2 days off per week like normal people!!!!! 

The only exception to this schedule will be our two Astrocamp joint camps. We will run regular 48 hour camps for those but only take the 40 Astrocampers. Hopefully Bill will be here to cook for those. 

The Phoenix communications officer

Flight Directors:
I'll need your summer stories this week! Remember, I have to arrange Hypercard tactical stacks and Bill needs plenty of time to do the video track. 

Also, Kyle needs your simulator and flight descriptions so we can launch our new website. I would like to do that this week. 

Challenger Center:

Three department heads from the Salt Lake Community College visited the Center last Wednesday. The SLCC is studying the visibility of building a Challenger Center to service northern Utah. They were extremely impressed with our Center and repeatedly commented on how such a facility could exist in Utah without them knowing about it. I get that alot. They are looking to become partners with our Center, Astrocamp, and the new Clark Planetarium as we work to enrich space education for Utah's students. We welcome them on board and wish them luck. 

The Phoenix Captain and First Officer

USS Pathfinder:

I've received word that our sister center in Logan (USS Pathfinder) will open for school missions this week. We wish Dave Wall and James Porter SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!!

My final words:

THAT IS ALL.

Mr. Williamson  

Theater Imaginarium

The Best Video Clips from Around the World edited for a Gentler Audience.