The goal of the Academy is to inspire gifted students to become leaders in the aerospace program

NASA Academy at Ames Mission Statement

The goal of the Academy is to inspire gifted students to become leaders in the aerospace program. Its primary objectives are to:

1) provide upper level undergraduate/first year graduate students cutting-edge research opportunities with NASA scientists, engineers, and educators,

2) provide opportunities for leadership development, teamwork, and relationship building,

3) connect to communities at different places in the educational pipeline through special projects and outreach efforts, especially to underrepresented student populations, and

4) link Academy alumni to future hiring opportunities within NASA and throughout the space program.

The NASA Academy program is committed to providing a strong technical foundation through which leadership potential can develop among an academically strong and diverse student population. Upon graduation, students immediately find themselves within a latticed network of support from the NASA Academy Alumni Association (NAAA). This structure helps place the students in positions of employment within NASA and in related industry positions.

Recruitment efforts are under expansion. Our intent is to cast a wider net to minority serving institutions, so that qualified but previously underrepresented student populations make up a larger percentage of Academy applicants and RAs. In recent years, percentages of minority populations have hovered between 19-26%. Our goal is to increase the opportunities by attracting highly qualified students who may never have heard of the Academy through current recruitment procedures. Alumni and NASA scientists are encouraged to promote the NASA Academy while giving general public talks and when visiting campuses to work with academic colleagues. A concerted effort is being made to identify institutions we must personally visit. In addition, the Academy website address (URL) and program information is annually sent to a broad range of colleges which include many underrepresented populations. At the National Space Grant Consortium meeting, Pasadena California, October, 2004, current NASA Academy leaders will appeal to the Board of Directors, through the Academy Advisory Committee, for support in reaching further when selecting candidates for the 2005 program.

The vision of the Academy as described by its founder, Dr. Gerald Soffen is “To give possible leaders a view into how NASA, the university community, and the private sector function, set their priorities, and contribute to the success of the aerospace program.” In today’s world, the need for such an opportunity is even more compelling. NASA needs inspired and educated youth eager to take us to the Moon, to Mars and to study all that lies beyond.