Realcomm to Sponsor International Space Station Project Involving San Diego High School Girls

CARLSBAD, CA, October 22, 2012 (Press-News.org) Realcomm Conference Group, LLC, a global leader in providing education, information and networking opportunities on the topic of technology, automation and innovation for the commercial, corporate and institutional real estate industry, announced today that it will sponsor a group of San Diego high school girls in a project that will send an experiment to the International Space Station (ISS). The program will be one of seven student-designed robotic micro-labs that will be tested on the ISS in February 2013. The micro-lab will spend one month in orbit in micro-gravity, traveling approximately 15 million miles at an altitude of about 250 miles above the Earth. CALIT2, a UC San Diego/UC Irvine partnership and globally recognized organization that develops futuristic cross-disciplinary technology-driven projects, is a supporting sponsor of this project.

"Through the years, I have seen a decline in math and science programs that truly engage our youth. Realcomm has been working for many years to raise money and awareness that would bring accelerated math and science education into the mainstream conversation. Sponsoring 15 young women from the BE WiSE program to install a micro-lab experiment on the ISS was an excellent opportunity that could not be missed," said Jim Young, CEO and Founder of Realcomm. "Given that the ISS is the 'most intelligent building in the universe,' this fits very well with the mission and vision of Realcomm."

Realcomm is partnering with BE WiSE (Better Education for Women in Science & Engineering), an initiative that strives to makes a difference for talented young women who are encouraged to pursue careers in science and engineering. BE WiSE is a program of the San Diego Science Alliance, which is a catalyst for improving K-12 science education in San Diego County.

BE WiSE will also be working in alliance with The Quest Institute for Quality Education and the AMSE Institute of Valley Christian High School (VCHS) of San Jose, the founder of this extraordinary ISS program. This space station opportunity is made possible by NanoRacks, LLC, via its Space Act Agreement with NASA's U.S. National Lab. In addition to developing four of their own ISS experiments, VCHS students will also be designing, testing, qualifying and launching a communications satellite from the International Space Station in the Summer of 2013 via its relationship with NanoRacks.

Under the leadership of BE WiSE, Quest Institute for Quality Education and VCHS, the following are the San Diego County high schools represented by the students in this groundbreaking BEWise ISS Project:
- Academy of our Lady of Peace
- Canyon Crest Academy
- Carlsbad High School
- Cathedral Catholic High School
- La Jolla High School
- Mission Vista High School
- Patrick Henry High School
- Rancho Buena Vista High School
- S.D. High School of International Studies
- San Marcos High School
- Santa Fe Christian Schools
- The Bishop's School
- Torrey Pines High School

The following represent the adult leadership involved in this exciting project:
- Dr. Clifford E. Daugherty, President & CEO, Quest Institute for Quality Education & CEO, Valley Christian Schools
- Werner G. Vavken, Chairman, Valley Christian High School AMSE & ISS Program Mentor
- Dan Saldana, Director, ISS & Satellite Programs, Valley Christian High School
- Patricia S. Winter, BE WiSE (Co-Founder & Retired Program Director)
- Rick Beach, President, San Diego Science Alliance
- Hilde Van Den Bergh, Miramar Community College
- Lara Dickens, Patrick Henry High School
- Rachel MacManus, Canyon Crest Academy
- Shari Lyn Duran, Steele Canyon Charter High School
- Wendy Slijk, Canyon Crest Academy
- Chelsea Smith Carmichael, Engineer, Northrop Gruman (Stanford graduate and a BE WiSE alumni)

This collaboration is an exemplary example of an extraordinary project that will stimulate interest in math and science. It allows these young women to apply what they have learned in the classroom, to work with engineers and professionals in the field and learn real-world scientific industry techniques and new technologies. It is the groundwork for engaging girls in math and science and producing the next-generation of leaders who will ultimately keep the economy moving in the right direction and the United States at the forefront of innovation.

For more information on the ISS BE WiSE program, visit: www.sdsa.org/programs/be-wise/programs/be-wise/international-space-station-academy.

About Realcomm
Realcomm Conference Group, LLC is the leading research and educational institution that produces annual conferences and expositions on technology, automated business solutions and intelligent buildings strategies for executives in commercial, corporate, government and institutional real estate. Realcomm was founded in 1999 with the goal of bringing industry leaders together to discuss, demonstrate and debate the latest innovations that impact the industry. Today, in addition to the annual conferences, Realcomm conducts webinars, workshops and other strategic services to educate industry professionals about the latest business solutions and technologies to improve commercial real estate development, leasing, management and operations. For more information, visit www.realcomm.com.

About BE WiSE
BE WiSE makes a difference for talented young women who are encouraged to contribute to science and engineering professions. BE WiSE invites girls in grades 7 and 8 to Science Overnights to explore their interest in science, hosts events for BE WiSE alumnae in high school to encourage their selection of more courses in science and math, and exposes these girls to adult women scientists who share their knowledge and passion and experiences with science and engineering careers. BE WiSE selects girls from all across San Diego County and has sustained contact with over five hundred girls over the past 12 years. The first BE WiSE alumnae entered college in June 2003. BE WiSE is a Program of the San Diego Science Alliance (SDSA), the catalyst for improving K-12 science education in San Diego County. SDSA delivers quality experiential programs, builds bridges between the region's diverse business, education and scientific research communities and fosters public/private partnerships to increase science literacy. For more information, visit www.sdsa.org/programs/be-wise.

About The Quest Institute for Quality Education
The mission is to develop and sustain premier comprehensive schools in support of the Quest for Excellence through Academic Achievement, Artistic Beauty and Athletic Distinction. The purpose is to support schools and organizations in pursuit of the Quest for Excellence and quality educational instruction. The Institute shall uphold the Judeo-Christian values of our Founding Fathers whose writings include the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights and other documents. The Quest Institute makes space science available to schools and organizations with its ISS Partnership Program. For more information, visit www.thequestinstitute.com.

About Valley Christian Schools
Valley Christian Schools (VCS) is a private, K-12 Christian school system located in the heart of Silicon Valley in San Jose, California. Valley Christian Schools, a Quest Institute for Quality Education host school, provides rigorous college preparatory programs while offering a K-12 comprehensive education. VCS challenges students to aspire toward lives of character, service, and influence while pursuing their individual Quest for Excellence through A3 - Academic Achievement, Artistic Beauty and Athletic Distinction. For more information, visit www.vcs.net.

About NanoRacks, LLC
NanoRacks, LLC provides the ultimate 'Plug and Play' microgravity research facilities allowing small standardized payloads to be plugged into any of our platforms, providing interface with the International Space Station power and data capabilities. The company brings together entrepreneurs, scientists and engineers who have real-life experience and share a passion for space including humanity's utilization of low-earth orbit. NanoRacks have partnerships with a growing list of world-class organizations that allows them to provide seamless support from customer interface to payload development to space station integration. For more information, visit www.nanoracks.com.

About CALIT2
The California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (CALIT2) is $400 million academic research institution jointly run by the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and the University of California, Irvine (UCI). CALIT2 was established in 2000 as one of the four UC Gray Davis Institutes for Science and Innovation. As a multidisciplinary research institution, it is devoted to conducting cutting-edge research discovering new ways in which emerging technologies can improve the state's economy and citizens' quality of life. For more information, visit www.calit2.net.