Back To Space Announces Selection of Student Ambassador Group 1

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Oct 09, 2018, 08:45 ET

DALLAS, Oct. 9, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Back To Space (BTS) is excited to announce the selection of Student Ambassador Group 1, the first class of students in the program. To commemorate the winners, BTS will host a Gala event on Friday, October 19, 2018 at the Frontiers of Flight Museum in Dallas. The chosen date aligns with the 50th anniversary of the historic Apollo 7 mission. Attending from the BTS Astronaut Team will be Apollo 15 command module pilot Al Worden, Apollo 16 lunar module pilot Charlie Duke, and Apollo 7 lunar module pilot Walt Cunningham.

From the Back to Space Astronaut Team: Apollo 7 lunar module pilot Walt Cunningham, Apollo 15 command module pilot Al Worden, and Apollo 16 lunar module pilot Charlie Duke

Back to Space Student Ambassador Group 1 Mission Patch

A number of special guests will also be in attendance, including Jack Roosa, son of Apollo 14 astronaut Stuart Roosa, Andrew Aldrin, son of Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin. Other guests include Alyssa Carson, a teen training to be on the first human mission to Mars. Maciej Maga, one of the world's preeminent portraiture artists will unveil his original Apollo painting to celebrate the event, and the MC for the evening will be Mark Victor Hansen, creator of Chicken Soup for the Soul.

The BTS Student Ambassador Competition was open to US citizens enrolled in grades 8 through 12, and included students from schools across the country. Each participating student had the option to submit an essay or a video on one of four topics. These topics included the historical significance of the Apollo program, a creative solution to bring Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) back into popular culture, and why they are driven to go to space. Each entry demonstrated the student's passion for STEM with incredible levels of intellect and creativity. So much so that process of narrowing down the applicants to the elite members of Group 1 proved to be an extraordinarily difficult task.

Now that the 25 winners have been selected, the Student Ambassadors will begin their mission of promoting the message of BTS, which is to bring STEM and space exploration back into popular culture. As BTS founder Danielle Dallas Roosa laments, "How many students can name numerous reality show 'stars'? But how few can name anyone who's actually been among the stars? It's unsettling. We aim to bring the accomplishments of these American heroes, starting with the Apollo astronauts, into the foreground of pop culture. And our Student Ambassadors will do just that--empower and inspire their friends and schools with the fascination of STEM and space exploration. A new exciting wave we call Exponential STEM."

ABOUT BACK TO SPACE

Back To Space, LLC, founded by visionary Danielle Roosa, granddaughter of Apollo 14 astronaut Stuart Roosa, begins with one of mankind's most significant accomplishments of all time: America's Apollo moon program.

BTS has three core objectives:

PRESERVE the legacy of the Apollo astronauts by focusing Americans on the 50th anniversary of Apollo.
PREPARE and inspire high-school aged students to focus on STEM, Apollo history, and the future of spaceflight.
PROPEL the U.S.A. to commit to finding a pathway to STEM education, "not because it is easy, but because it is hard, and because it is the future of humanity."

The BTS team includes astronauts Walt Cunningham (Apollo 7), Charlie Duke (Apollo 16), and Al Worden (Apollo 15), with Buzz Aldrin (Apollo 11) serving as consulting astronaut. Along with founder Danielle Roosa, the management team consists of serial entrepreneur and Teladoc founder Michael Gorton, celebrated and acclaimed business executive Carl Dickerson, serial entrepreneur and tech guru Eric Lenington, and flight director and American hero Jack Roosa. Former Blockbuster and 7-11 CEO Jim Keyes serves as a senior consultant.