Student Video Challenge

CTE Month and NASA HUNCH 2026-27 Student Video Challenge

ACTE and NASA HUNCH invite educators to encourage their students to participate in this year’s Student Video Challenge — Beyond the Astronaut: The Careers Powering Artemis.

NASA’s Artemis program is one of the most ambitious endeavors in human history, requiring far more than astronauts and rocket engineers to succeed. Behind every launch, lunar mission and milestone is a diverse workforce representing hundreds of careers.

This challenge gives students the opportunity to explore the many careers that make space exploration possible and connect those careers to the CTE pathways they are pursuing today. Whether your students are interested in engineering, health science, business, media production or another field, they’ll discover how their skills can contribute to the future of space exploration. Videos must be two minutes or less and are due March 1.

2026–27 Video Theme — Beyond the Astronaut: The Careers Powering Artemis
The core question to address is this: Which career(s) make Artemis possible and what does the path to that career look like for you as a student? Please read on for additional information (including the Video Tips & Resources section).

The contest is open to students of all ages, including elementary, middle school, high school and postsecondary students enrolled in any school or who is homeschooled. Students may enter as individuals or as a team. However, students may submit only one video per year.

Interested in Sponsoring the Video Challenge? Please contact Julia Kendrick at ACTE or Loy W.  Trevino at NASA HUNCH if you are interested in sponsoring the video challenge via scholarships to winning students.

Suggested Video Ideas

  • The Deep Dive: Choose one career and profile it thoroughly. Who does this job? What does a typical day look like? What is the direct connection to an Artemis mission need? What is the educational pathway? An interview with a real professional strengthens this format significantly.
  • The Mosaic: Show three to five very different careers all converging on a single Artemis mission moment — a launch, a lunar landing, a sample return. Illustrate how interdependent the workforce is and how failure in any one role affects the whole mission.
  • The Student Journey: Follow a student — the video makers themselves or a peer — who is interested in a space-related career. Map their current CTE coursework to a real NASA role. Make it personal and aspirational, showing the specific steps from where they are today to their goal.
  • The Unexpected Career: Deliberately choose a career nobody associates with space exploration — chef, psychologist, lawyer, textile engineer — and make the case for why it is essential to Artemis. The goal is to genuinely surprise the audience and expand their sense of who belongs in the space industry
  • The Local Connection: Find the Artemis connection in your own community. Is there a local company that manufactures a component? A university with a relevant research program? A CTE pathway that feeds directly into the aerospace workforce? Ground the story geographically and make the mission feel close to home.

Possible Career Families to Explore
Students may explore any of the following career families. This list is illustrative, not exhaustive — encourage teams to dig deeper.

  • Engineering & Technical
    • Aerospace and mechanical engineers
    • Propulsion and cryogenics specialists
    • Avionics and electrical engineers
    • Additive manufacturing / 3D printing technicians
    • Robotics and automation engineers
    • Thermal protection systems engineers (heatshields, insulation)
    • Guidance, Navigation & Control specialists
  • Life & Health Sciences
    • Flight surgeons and aerospace medicine physicians
    • Exercise physiologists supporting crew fitness in microgravity
    • Nutritionists and food scientists developing space food
    • Psychologists and behavioral health specialists for long-duration crews
    • Pharmacists managing medication stability in deep space
  • Earth & Planetary Science
    • Geologists training astronauts to identify and sample lunar rocks
    • Selenographers (lunar surface mappers)
    • Remote sensing and imagery analysts
    • Space weather scientists
  • Information Technology & Cybersecurity
    • Flight software developers
    • Mission control systems engineers
    • AI and machine learning engineers for autonomous systems
    • Cybersecurity specialists protecting spacecraft communications
    • Data scientists analyzing telemetry and crew health data
  • Operations & Mission Support
    • Flight directors and flight controllers
    • Capsule communicators (CAPCOMs)
    • Launch directors and range safety officers
    • Simulation and training engineers
    • Logistics and supply chain specialists
  • Design & Manufacturing
    • Industrial designers (crew interfaces, habitat interiors)
    • Spacesuit and textile engineers
    • Human factors and ergonomics specialists
    • Quality assurance and safety inspectors
  • Communications & Media
    • Public affairs officers and science communicators
    • Visual information specialists and documentary filmmakers
    • Technical writers and instructional designers
    • Social media and digital engagement professionals
  • Business, Policy & Law
    • Program and project managers
    • Contract and procurement specialists
    • Space law and policy analysts
    • International partnership coordinators

Recommended Resources:

We also encourage you to view the collection of winning videos from previous years.

  • Deadline to submit your video is March 1 at 11:59 p.m. EST.
  • Video entries must be 2 minutes or less in length and include name of school, year (2026-27), and names of video creators and participants (credits)
  • Entries must incorporate:
    • The CTE Month and NASA HUNCH logos.
    • The following message, presented as text on-screen and/or spoken by talent: “Learn more about career and technical education at ctemonth.org and NASA HUNCH at nasahunch.com.”
  • Videos must be a minimum video resolution of 1280 x 720 format, or an audio independent format (e.g., Instagram square composition).
  • Teachers and students will need to fill out different forms that can be found here. Note that teachers will need to first email eloy.w.trevino@nasa.gov to receive an authorization code, and after they receive an authorization code, they can then sign up their students.
  • To finalize a submission, email the YouTube link to videochallenge@acteonline.org and provide names, phone numbers, emails and mailing addresses for both student creators and educator contacts.
  • Entries that contain music or other copyrighted media must be accompanied by proof that entrants have the expressed permission of the original copyright holder. The following are examples of appropriate proof:
    • The name of the song along with the receipt from the school’s purchase of the song
    • A link to the website or Youtube video featuring the song
    • A signed letter or form stating that the music was created by a student in Garage Band or another program and that the student has been given permission for the music to be used royalty free

Please note: ACTE and NASA HUNCH retain the copyright on any submitted material and reserve the right to use the material in any way or format they see fit. Entries cannot be used for any commercial activity.

ACTE and NASA HUNCH will announce in May three winners.

  • NASA HUNCH will award the winning schools flown HUNCH patches (flown on the International Space Station!) with plaques
  • ACTE will award the winning schools $200 each, and each winning team member (maximum of 6 students per team) a $50 Amazon gift card.

Winning videos will be:

  • Promoted to ACTE members on ACTE’s CTE Month webpage, in ACTE News, in Techniques magazine, via ACTE’s social media channels and in other ACTE’s communication channels.
  • Shared with NASA HUNCH schools, at HUNCH Recognition Ceremonies, the CTE community and the general public throughout the year.

View last year’s winners

For more information or questions about submissions, please contact Julia Kendrick at ACTE or Loy W. Trevino at NASA HUNCH.

About CTE Month and NASA HUNCH
ACTE, empowering educators to deliver high-quality CTE programs that ensure students are positioned for career success, is host to the annual CTE Month awareness campaign held each February. HUNCH stands for High School Students United with NASA to Create Hardware and is looking to extend its message of inspiring students through project-based learning to CTE students across the nation. NASA HUNCH high schools offer students the opportunity to launch their careers through the participation in the design and fabrication of real world valued products for NASA.