KU RocketStars take top honors at First Nations Launch International Rocket Competition

Group photo of KU Rocket Stars team standing in field holding small black painted rocket.

From left are Trey Jimboy, Kate Rosa, Mollie Coffey, Aaron Newell (Tripoli Rocketry mentor), Chamisa Edmo, Annalise Guthrie and Benjamin Smit.

Wed, 04/30/2025

Chamisa Edmo

LAWRENCE — The KU RocketStars, a team of Indigenous science, technology, engineering and math scholars from the University of Kansas and members of the KU American Indian Science and Engineering Society chapter, won two awards at the 16th Annual First Nations Launch High-Powered Rocketry Competition, hosted by NASA’s Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium.

The competition, held April 25–27 at the Richard Bong State Recreation Area in Kansasville, Wisconsin, brought together an international field of top institutions including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Toronto, Northern Arizona University, University of British Columbia, University of Washington, Queens University of Canada, and tribal colleges such as Menominee Nation, Leech Lake and Turtle Mountain.

KU’s team stood out among strong international competition, securing the Outreach Award and winning the Patch Design Contest for its rocket, The Star Snagger.

The KU RocketStars team members include:

Chamisa Edmo (Navajo, Blackfeet, Shoshone-Bannock), graduate student in computer science, Lawrence.
Kate Rosa (Sicangu Lakota), undergraduate in molecular biology, Emporia.
Trey Jimboy (Tlingit), undergraduate student in electrical engineering, Lawrence.
Annalise Guthrie (Cherokee), doctoral student in ecology & evolutionary biology, Kansas City, Missouri.
Mollie Coffey (Comanche), undergraduate student in microbiology with a minor in Spanish, Lawrence.
Karen Middleton (Kickapoo), undergraduate student in computer science, Lawrence.

The Outreach Award recognized KU RocketStars’ exceptional commitment to community engagement.

Throughout the year, the team led innovative STEM education activities, including:

Film canister rocket demonstrations at the KU Carnival of Chemistry and the KU Powwow.
A rocket launch event for the Girl Scouts of Kansas City, helping scouts earn their STEM patches.
A “Learn Rocketry” series with Lawrence and Free State high schools, where Indigenous Intertribal Club students built and launched Estes rockets and toured KU Engineering, and were introduced to KU’s Indigenous STEM research opportunities.

"This is about more than rockets," said Edmo, team lead. "It’s about showing Indigenous youth that they belong in science, engineering and in space exploration."

Display of small rockets outdoors. — Rocket setup at Girl Scout volunteer event.

Now, in their second year, the KU RocketStars have steadily expanded their knowledge and technical certification. Five members — Edmo and Rosa (Level 2 certification), Guthrie, Jimboy and Coffey (Level 1 certification) — have achieved High Powered Rocketry Certification through the national Tripoli Rocketry Association, with earlier successful flights at the Argonia Cup competition.

In its 16th and final year, the First Nations Launch competition has offered a unique opportunity for students from tribal colleges, Native American-Serving Nontribal Institutions (NASNTI) and AISES collegiate chapters to gain hands-on aerospace experience. The program has aimed to ignite a passion for STEM fields among Indigenous students by combining technical challenges with cultural pride and community building.