One thousand San Joaquin County fifth-grade students recently participated in the 2026 Science Blast STEAAM Ingenuity: A Golden Opportunity program at University of the Pacific.
San Joaquin County students traveled to Pacific’s Alex G. Spanos Center in Stockton on Thursday, April 2, for a day full of interactive workshops in STEAAM, which stands for science, technology, engineering, arts, agriculture (and climate change) and mathematics.
University of the Pacific partnered with the José M. Hernandez Reaching for the Stars Foundation in 2006 to co-host the Science Blast program, in a shared mission to inspire young students to pursue careers in science, engineering, space exploration and innovative entrepreneurship, Pacific said.
Students at this year’s Science Blast had the opportunity to hear from Stockton’s former NASA astronaut and Pacific alumnus, José M. Hernández. They also had the chance to compete for a $1,000 gift card for their school.
Astronaut Jose Hernandez welcomes students to the 2025 Science Blast STEAAM Initiative sponsored by Hernandez’s Reaching for the Stars Foundation. at Spanos Center on the University of the Pacific campus in Stockton on Apr. 17, 2025. About 800 5th graders from schools around San Joaquin County got hands-on experience with science workshops during the event.
“It’s very important to have it at Pacific or at a university setting, because I want the kids to see themselves in a university setting. I graduated from University of the Pacific and I lived on the east side of Stockton. The first time I stepped on this campus was the day I got accepted to the School of Engineering, and no kids should have to do that,” Hernandez said. “I want these kids to see themselves in classrooms, see themselves eating lunch, see themselves here in the auditorium, so that we take the mystery out of the university, and they’re not afraid of a university.”
Hernandez continued: “The main purpose is to help fifth-graders see the possibilities that are out there for them and for them to see it through the story of somebody who came from their community.
“The really important part about them hearing from him is not Jose’s success, but the story of perseverance. He tells his story about how he tried, how he failed, how he learned from that failure. That’s such a great message for students,” said Elizabeth Orwin, dean of Pacific’s School of Engineering and Computer Science.
“We spend a lot of time trying to get our own students to think that way. If something doesn’t go perfect, it’s not game over. You dust yourself off and ask, ‘What did I learn from that? How can I improve myself? How do I do it again?’” Orwin said.
‘The license to dream big’
Pacific officials said participating students were from local schools such as the Jose M. Hernandez El Concilio Charter School, Lodi, Manteca, New Jerusalem, Stockton and Tracy school districts.
“I tell them how I became an astronaut, and I’m hoping I’m giving them not only the license to dream big, but the tools to convert that dream into reality,” Hernandez said.
Through the annual Science Blast event, students are encouraged to imagine how they would solve global challenges such as climate change, food security and sustaining human life during long space travel trips, Pacific said.
“My hope is the same thing that happened to me when I was 10 years old. That’s why it’s no coincidence that our science class is fifth graders. They’re 10-year-olds, because when I was a 10-year-old, I watched the last Apollo mission, it was Apollo 17, and it was none other than Gene Cernan walking on the surface of the moon. I was hooked. That’s when I decided to be an astronaut,” Hernandez said.
“Let’s expose them to a world of science, a world of technology, a world of engineering, a world of mathematics, a world of STEM so that hopefully it opens their eyes,” Hernandez continued, “and by seeing someone that looks like them, that grew up in the same community, perhaps in the same socioeconomic background as they find themselves in, they can see that I was able to reach for my own stars. I’m hoping it empowers them to reach for their own stars.”
According to Pacific, the Science Blast program was supported with materials provided through the Lawrence Livermore National Security Community Gift Program that funds three out of six workshops at the Science Blast. The program also featured aeronautical design, StarLab and a high school CTE (Career Technical Education) showcase, and a STEAAM careers discussion panel with a message from Ellen Ochoa, former NASA astronaut and former director of the Johnson Space Center and American engineer. Ocha was also the first Latina to go to space.
Students participate in a workshop at Spanos Center on the University of the Pacific campus in Stockton on Apr. 17, 2025. About 800 5th graders from schools around San Joaquin County got hands-on experience with science workshops as a part of the 2025 Science Blast STEAAM Initiative sponsored by astronaut Jose Hernandez’s Reaching for the Stars Foundation.
Orwin said one of Pacific’s largest missions is to partner with the community.
“It’s really important for students to get on a university campus so they can see what that’s like. When I was young, I remember going to a similar event in sixth or seventh grade. It was the first time I was on a university campus and felt like, ‘Oh, this is a place that I could feel comfortable,'” Orwin said. “The other piece is we have students here today who are volunteering, and that’s part of their giving back to their community.”
Orwin added that Pacific’s engineering students who volunteered at the Science Blast were part of MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement) and many of them are also from the area and love to engage with local students to help them see the possibilities that a STEM education or career can bring them.
“I’m most excited for the potential of waking up 20 years from now and reading an interview, or seeing an interview of an astronaut that says, ‘I became an astronaut because I went to one of Jose Hernandez’s science blast events,'” Hernandez said.
To learn more about the José M. Hernandez Reaching for the Stars Foundation, visit and to learn more about the University of the Pacific, visit pacific.edu.
Record reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers business and community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. To support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.
This article originally appeared on The Record: Astronaut José M. Hernández inspires students at Stockton Science Blast