Aurora Central Hosts NASA Astronaut

NEWS RELEASE # 16
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 29, 2012

WHAT: APS Hosts NASA Astronaut
WHEN: August 30, 9 a.m.
WHERE: Aurora Central High School, 11700 East 11^th Avenue 80010

 

Aurora Central Hosts NASA Astronaut

Leland D. Melvin, a former astronaut and current NASA administrator, will visit Aurora Central High School to discuss the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, (STEM), on Thursday, August 30. SHADES OF BLUE, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing young people with the educational opportunities, training and employment assistance needed to pursue careers in the aviation and aerospace industries, is hosting Melvin’s visit to Colorado.

SHADES OF BLUE was conceived and created by a group of airline pilots, educators and business people who have an interest in aviation and aerospace and who wish to introduce students to career opportunities in those fields. "Shades of Blue is committed to introducing students to the field of aviation,” says Founder and Executive Director Willie Daniels. “As a pilot for United Airlines, and a graduate from the Aviation program at Metro State University of Denver, I’m focused on providing our young people with access to role models and resources that can help them connect the dots with what they are learning in school to what career opportunities exist.”

Director Melvin, who has held the post of NASA Associate Administrator for Education since October 2010, is responsible for the development and implementation of the agency's education programs that strengthen student involvement and public awareness about its scientific goals and missions. In this role, he leads the agency in inspiring interest in STEM fields through NASA's unique mission, workforce, facilities, research and innovations.

Director Melvin also serves on the White House National Science and Technology Council's Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education, or CoSTEM. CoSTEM coordinates the STEM education activities and programs for all federal agencies, encourages the teaching of innovation and entrepreneurship as part of STEM education, and implements a five-year STEM education strategy for all federal agencies. He is the United States representative on the International Space Education Board, or ISEB, a global collaboration in space education between NASA, the Canadian Space Agency, the European Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and the Centre National d'Études Spatiales. The ISEB shares best practices and unites efforts to foster interest in space, science and technology among the student community worldwide.

Director Melvin earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from the University of Richmond, where he also excelled as a wide receiver for the Spiders' football team. He became a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Academic All American and University of Richmond Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee. He was then drafted into the National Football League, or NFL, by the Detroit Lions in 1986 and also spent time with the Dallas Cowboys and the Toronto Argonauts. After injuries sidelined his football career, he returned to academia and earned his Master of Science degree in materials science engineering from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. He holds honorary doctorates from Centre College, St Paul's College and Campbellsville University.

Director Melvin began his NASA career in 1989 as an Aerospace Research Engineer at the agency's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. He entered NASA’s astronaut corps in 1998 and served as a Mission Specialist operating the robotic arm on two space shuttle missions to the International Space Station: STS-122 in 2008 and STS-129 in 2009. Astronaut Candidate Training included orientation briefings and tours, numerous scientific and technical briefings, intensive instruction in Shuttle and International Space Station systems, physiological training and ground school to prepare for T-38 flight training, as well as learning water and wilderness survival techniques.

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Interested media may contact APS News Media Specialist
Paula Hans at 303-326-2755 for more information