NASA Johnson Space Center, Texas A&M System sign Space Act Agreement
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas — From public outreach to powerful research, The Texas A&M University System has been a faithful partner for years with NASA to explore our place in the universe.
Eight of the 11 Texas A&M System schools are space-grant institutions committed to participating in NASA’s aeronautics and space projects. And on May 3, NASA Johnson Space Center and the Texas A&M System signed a Space Act Agreement, an umbrella agreement that allows the agency to work with organizations that enable fulfillment of its mission, to expand collaborative efforts across all entities within the Texas A&M System.
“NASA employs its share of A&M System alumni, and we have many former astronauts teaching on our campuses,” John Sharp, chancellor of the Texas A&M System, said. “So I think it is fair to say that the Texas A&M System is in a strong position to make a difference in space research and exploration.”
Through the Space Act Agreement, students enrolled in Texas A&M System schools benefit from educational outreach opportunities and gain real world experience through their interaction with NASA subject matter experts. Faculty in Texas A&M System schools will participate in NASA research and technology initiatives, technology transfer programs and have access to unique NASA facilities and laboratories.
“NASA’s Johnson Space Center has a long history of working with colleges and universities since the early days of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs to help us achieve our human spaceflight missions,” said Vanessa Wyche, director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. “We are eager to partner and collaborate with the Texas A&M System in vital research and technology development initiatives that will enable us to meet our nation’s exploration goals and advance human spaceflight as we work to land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon under Artemis.”
This agreement will also allow the Texas A&M System and NASA to work collaboratively to facilitate joint research, technology development, and educational and outreach initiatives. These goals will be pursued through undergraduate and graduate programs and joint research programs focusing on science and technology topics of interest to NASA.
“We are proud of our long history with NASA and the Johnson Space Center and look forward to an even more productive and mutually beneficial collaboration,” said Texas A&M President M. Katherine Banks.
By bringing together the best minds in the Texas A&M System with the best minds at NASA, this collaboration supports NASA’s goal to be an established global innovation leader in science and space exploration.
For more information about NASA Johnson Space Center’s University Relations efforts, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/external_relations/university-collaboration.
About The Texas A&M University System
The Texas A&M University System is one of the largest systems of higher education in the nation, with a budget of $7.2 billion. Through a statewide network of 11 universities, a comprehensive health science center, eight state agencies, and the RELLIS Campus, the Texas A&M System educates more than 152,000 students and makes more than 24 million additional educational contacts through service and outreach programs each year. System-wide, research and development expenditures exceed $1 billion and help drive the state’s economy.
Contact: Laylan Copelin
Vice Chancellor of Marketing and Communications
(979) 458-6425
(512) 289-2782 cell
lcopelin@tamus.edu