Lockheed Martin and STEM Punks launch education program

Lockheed Martin Australia and STEM Punks have launched a space-focused educational program.

Launched at Armidale Secondary College in New South Wales, with many others planned ahead, the flagship STEM learning initiative will deliver school curricula designed to educate, upskill and inspire Australia’s future space workforce.

The two-day intensive education experience involved 150 students across years 7 to 10 learning new STEM skills in radio frequency communications and coding through a mix of online and face-to-face modules.

One of LMA‘s principal researchers also spoke to the group about career pathways.

“Lockheed Martin Australia’s partnership with STEM Punks represents part of our broader commitment to building a more robust and resilient Australian space industry,” said David Ball, regional director for Space at Lockheed Martin Australia.

“By bringing space to life for young Australians, we can engage and equip them with critical skills needed to support our nation’s burgeoning industry long into the future.”

Armidale Secondary College is located near Lockheed Martin’s Tracking, Telemetry and Command (TT&C) ground station at Uralla, where the company has been supporting satellites in orbit for over 20 years.

“It’s pleasing to see that STEM Punks’ program, which included vital industry input from Lockheed Martin Australia, resonated so deeply with Armidale’s students,” said Michael Holmstrom, STEM Punks CEO and co-founder.

“Over the life of this partnership, STEM Punks will engage a diverse array of students in 80 primary and secondary schools across Australia. By working closely with Lockheed Martin Australia, we can provide these students unparalleled opportunities to connect with industry and learn from some of our nation’s leading experts in space.”

“The STEM Punks team were exceptional in their delivery of the course, and ensured total engagement of the students,” said Tobie White, head teacher of science, Armidale Secondary College.

“They demonstrated the real-world application of design, experimenting and coding, which captured the imagination of the students and allowed them to practice these skills through problem solving-scenarios.”

In addition to working with students in class, STEM Punks and Lockheed Martin Australia will implement a national program to help enable secondary students to advance into areas of need across the Australian space industry. At a vocational level, the partnership will deliver a program for industry mentorship and skill development for individuals and groups within Australia’s space sector and adjacent industries.

The partnership with STEM Punks was announced in November 2021 to help fuel the workforce in supporting the development of Lockheed Martin Australia’s proposed JP9102 solution – a next-generation, sovereign military satellite communication (MILSATCOM) capability to the Australian Defence Force.

To complement its work with STEM Punks, Lockheed Martin Australia has also engaged an extensive Australian industry network to deliver solutions and supply chain opportunities for JP9102 and beyond, including Inovor Technologies, Av-Comm, Calytrix Technologies, Clearbox Systems, Conscia, DXC, EM Solutions, Linfox, Ronson Gears and Shoal Group.