Release:

Fort Wayne Air National Guard Base, IN – The Department of Defense funded
STARBASE Indiana STEM Program, located at the 122nd Fighter Wing, is in
jeopardy of closing as a result of a recent amendment to the FY13 Defense
Appropriation Bill (H.R.933).

If the amendment is passed, it would immediately dismantle a nationwide
education program, which has turned thousands of young students, over its
20+ year history, on to future Science Technology Engineering and Math
careers.

STARBASE Indiana has graduated 820 students in just over a year.  The
average increase of scores from the program’s pre-test to its post-test is
an astonishing 42%. 

“This program is invaluable to the youth of our local
community,” said Col David Augustine, 122nd Fighter Wing Commander.  

“I have seen 5th graders that come into the program who have no interest in STEM,
graduate full of excitement for science and technology.  The hands-on
approach that STARBASE uses to educate our kids, with the experiments and
high-tech equipment, is a great addition to our local curriculum that we
cannot afford to lose.”

In order for this to happen, the amendment must be approved by the Senate and then the House.