University of North Texas 
Meet Peggy Ann Malcolm, a UNT physics major in her senior year who is also pursuing her secondary education certification in physics and mathematics with Teach North Texas. With encouragement from her UNT mentor Dr. Rebekah Purvis, Peggy recently participated in an REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) program with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC), in partnership with Associated Universities Inc. (AUI) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). The REU, which took place from June 2024 to January 2025, focused on conducting research in astronomy education and public outreach. This experience led her to begin her senior thesis, which is culminating in a public event on campus on February 20.
“This REU really pushed my curiosity for research,” said Peggy. “I have always known I wanted to go into education, but I did not realize that research could be connected to public outreach and education in a way that would connect my current work with my future career goals.”
Under the guidance of Dr. Purvis and the assistance of Dr. Kaplan-Rakowski from the
College of Information, Peggy’s senior thesis is using virtual reality to investigate
people's attitudes towards astronomy before and after an immersive learning experience.
As part of this project, she will be hosting a public event in the UNT planetarium
on February 20 called “Journey Through the Stars” in which guests will utilize VR headsets to learn about space and provide feedback
to support her research project. 
“I wanted to produce an event where people of all ages could experience space and see how they feel before and after they engage with something that seems so far away,” she explained. “The VR experience will allow guests to explore the International Space Station (ISS); they will be able to roam about the cabin, look out into space, and watch videos that share perspectives of real astronauts who have been on the ISS.”
In January, Peggy presented the results of her REU research at the 245th Annual American Astronomical Society Conference in New Harbor, MD. She’s been the recipient of numerous scholarships while at UNT, including the Emerald Eagle Award, UNT’s Excellency Scholarship, the COS Society of Physics Students Scholarship, and several Teach North Texas scholarship awards and SEED grants.
Peggy is excited about her future in physics and teaching. “I hope that this research and the knowledge I gain from this event will sharpen my skills as an educator. Utilizing VR equipment to teach physics is relatively new, and I am hopeful that this experience will help inform how I will use VR in the future in my own classroom,” she said. “Once I graduate, I plan to get another certification to teach computer science. My dream is to land a position in education where I will be teaching high school students in ways that are engaging and meaningful.”