SALUTE TO CRISTA; `SAPCE CADET' LEADS CLASSROOM QUEST

BLOOMFIELD -- Her students refer to her as "The Space Cadet," and her classroom filled with space suits, shuttles, and photos as the "Space Room," but Sheila Perry doesn't mind.

Perry, technology coordinator at Bloomfield schools, is used to the nickname -- it suits her enthusiasm and interest in the NASA space exploration program.

And that enthusiasm has been very beneficial for the school district since Perry began teaching there in 1984.

Since then, Perry has received more than $400,000 in grants which have created a Christa McAuliffe computer lab and a portable planetarium for the schools and allowed students to talk to astronauts in space.

Perry's interest in the NASA space program and exploration began with a contest to name a space shuttle. Her students' submission -- the Endeavor -- was a state finalist.

But that didn't stop Perry. She went on to become a 1992 Christa McAuliffe Fellow and has studied at both the Huntsville, Ala., and Washington, D.C. Space Centers for Teachers.

"I didn't understand a thing," she said of the classes. But that hasn't quelled her interest in flight or science.

Perry admits she'd love to fly in space, but probably never will. "But don't tell Grace," she said. "Besides, they wouldn't let me leave," she said of her students at Bloomfield.

Grace Corrigan, Christa McAuliffe's mother, visited Bloomfield last week as part of a tribute to McAuliffe, who was the first teacher to fly in space. McAuliffe died when the shuttle exploded just after liftoff.

Perry wrote a $50,000 grant to honor McAuliffe and teach students more about electronic mail and the Internet as part of the 10th anniversary of the Challenger explosion. It was titled, "Christa, This One's For You and the Challenger Crew."

Another space shuttle crew has been important to students at the Bloomfield school. Three years ago, Perry and her third grade students talked to astronauts aboard the shuttle Columbia.

Perry designed the project that let her students talk to astronauts aboard the shuttle via a ham radio. The project "From Stars and Stripes to Satellites," was part of a $50,000 grant for the school.

The grant showed changes in communication in Bloomfield, where the Stars and Stripes military newspaper was published. About 10 students talked to the astronauts via a ham radio.

This week, Perry will submit two other grants for the school. They are titled "Shake Me But Don't Break Me," about earthquakes and "Spacemasters of the Web," which will create student home pages on the Internet.