Educators: Apply Now for the 2016 Alan Shepard Technology in Education Award

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Nov. 20, 2015) – Educators who have demonstrated a commitment to inspiring students’ interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) may apply now to receive the 2016 Alan Shepard Technology in Education Award.

Given annually by the Astronauts Memorial Foundation (AMF), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Space Foundation, the award recognizes contributors to technology in the education field in both formal and informal environments.

The award, named for Mercury and Apollo astronaut Alan Shepard, will be presented on April 11, 2016, at the opening ceremony of the Space Foundation’s 32nd Space Symposium at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Find the award application online at www.astronautsmemorial.org/alan-shepard-award.html. Submissions for the 2016 award must be mailed and postmarked no later than Friday, Jan. 15, 2016. The winner will be announced in March 2016.

One award is given annually; see more about the award and past recipients at www.spacefoundation.org/about/awards.

About the Space Foundation

Founded in 1983, the Space Foundation is the foremost advocate for all sectors of space, and is a global, nonprofit leader in space awareness activities, educational programs and major industry events, including the annual Space Symposium, in support of its mission “to advance space-related endeavors to inspire, enable and propel humanity.” Space Foundation World Headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo., USA, has a public Discovery Center, including El Pomar Space Gallery, Northrop Grumman Science Center featuring Science On a Sphere® and the Lockheed Martin Space Education Center. The Space Foundation has a field office in Houston and conducts government affairs from its Washington, D.C., office. It publishes The Space Report: The Authoritative Guide to Global Space Activityand through its Space Certification^TM and Space Technology Hall of Fame® programs, recognizes space-based innovations that have been adapted to improve life on Earth. Visit www.SpaceFoundation.org, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter, Google+, Flickr and YouTube, and read our e-newsletter Space Watch.

About the Astronauts Memorial Foundation

Founded in the wake of the Challenger accident in 1986, AMF honors and memorializes 24 astronauts who sacrificed their lives for the nation and the space program while on a U.S. government mission or in training. AMF is a private, not-for-profit organization approved by NASA to build and maintain two major facilities at the John F. Kennedy Space Center’s Visitor Complex: The Space Mirror Memorial and The Center for Space Education. Through the Center for Space Education, AMF partners with NASA to provide space-related educational technology training to teachers and students to foster an understanding of space exploration, to improve education through technology and to improve the quality of the space industry workforce. For more information, visit www.amfcse.org.

About NASA

NASA is an agency of the United States government, responsible for the nation’s civilian space program. Operational since 1958, NASA’s mission is to pioneer the future in space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research. It has led U.S. space exploration including the Mercury and Gemini space programs, the Apollo missions to the Moon, the Space Shuttle, U.S. involvement in the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope and robotic interplanetary and distant space missions. NASA is also responsible for long-term civilian and military aerospace research and research focused on better understanding Earth, the solar systems and the universe beyond. For more information, go to www.nasa.gov.