FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts:
Lori Trent, PAST Foundation - ltrent@pastfoundation.org
Representation Matters: Ad Astra Media is Helping More Kids See Themselves in STEM/STEAM
October 18, 2021 — “If you can see it, you can be it.” - It’s a quote that fills many a feed on social media and has been repeated to generations of kids. The prevailing thought is that you can be anything, do anything, as long as you apply yourself and work hard. It sounds reasonable, unless you’re a child from a minority group or underserved community.
Experts say when children from disadvantaged backgrounds are struggling to reach educational benchmarks, they have fewer role models who look like them and can boost their resilience. Not having a hero who looks like them can mean the difference between giving up and trying again.
Jose Morey, M.D. is not leaving that to chance. He’s part of a movement increasing diversity in the field of science, technology, engineering, and areas more commonly referred to as STEM and STEAM.
The founder and chief executive of Ad Astra Media says “As a doctor, I’m often the only person of color in these spaces and I want children of all ages to see themselves in the STEAM world and the possibilities that are open to them.” Ad Astra Media LLC., through a partnership with the PAST Foundation, is helping to change the narrative and image of a STEM and STEAM professional. A PAST Foundation Team wanted to see what would happen if young children were exposed to images of minority and women professionals in those respective fields. During a Summer Camp using materials from Ad Astra Media, specifically “Good Night Little Astronaut” and “Good Night Little Doctor,” the team set about providing lessons for the group of racially diverse students.
After explaining what astronauts and doctors do and the technology they use in their work, the children were asked to identify what a doctor “looked like.” They were shown photographs of multicultural men and women twice during the course of their lessons. Most of the children looked favorably at the diverse candidates.
“This is exactly what I had in mind when I created Ad Astra Media,” said Jose Morey, M.D, founder and chief executive of Ad Astra. Thanks to this successful outcome of the Summer Camp, Ad Astra Media is now developing teaching materials with the PAST Foundation based on their “Good Night” series to sell to schools and education organizations. Students will learn curriculum appropriate material from the PAST Foundation combined with the joyful adventures of the diverse characters a part of the series.
About Ad Astra Media LLC: Ad Astra Media seeks to renew faith in facts and reason and uplift underserved and minority communities by providing them with scientific role models in science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) to which they can aspire. Ad Astra Media is composed of individuals with experience at all levels of media (T.V. and commercial) production and extends into both traditional television (Spanish and English networks) and into leading streaming services and film studios.
About PAST Foundation: For over 20 years, PAST, a non-profit organization, has been a leader in designing STEM education across the nation, bringing problem-based learning to educators and experiential programs to students. Recently, PAST’s Innovation Lab was named as a promising example to Re-imagine High School as featured in Forbes. PAST has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Education for its Excellence in Innovation in the STEM 2026 vision report. PAST was the only educational entity in Ohio to be included in this publication.
PAST was also recognized in 2014, by CGI America and former President Bill Clinton for their outstanding work, and again in 2015 for their achievements in improving STEM education in rural America. In 2015, the PAST Innovation Lab was recognized by the White House Summit on High School Design.
For more information on PAST Foundation and how you can link learning to life, visit our website or contact Lori Trent at ltrent@pastfoundation.org.
Ad Astra Media Contact: Cesar R. Hernandez, Founder + Managing Director 401 E Jackson St, 33rd Floor, Tampa, FL 33602 325 Hudson St, New York, NY 10013 Tampa Bay | New York City M: (813) 277-6540 W: omnipublic.global