11.28.

06

Lindsay Crouch
757-864-3189, 757-870-6912 (mobile)

RELEASE: 06-072

NASA KICKS OFF NEW ADVENTURE FOR NORFOLK PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Astronaut Michael Barratt and NASA Langley Research Center Director

Lesa Roe will visit Nauticus, in Norfolk, Va., on Friday, Dec. 1, to
kick off the newly established educational partnership between NASA
and four Norfolk City Public Schools and to bring the Vision of Space
Exploration to students and their families.

Barratt and Roe will encourage students to study math and science so
they can pursue careers in aeronautics and space as they discuss
NASA's plans to return to the moon and go on to Mars.

Students from Chesterfield Elementary, Oceanair Elementary, Jacox

Elementary and Campostella Elementary Schools will visit Nauticus for
this kick-off event. The assembly will be held at 10 a.m. Friday.

Media interested in covering the event or arranging an interview with

Barratt or Roe should contact Lindsay Crouch at 757-870-6912.

Barratt came to Johnson Space Center, in Houston, Texas, in May 1991,

as an aerospace project physician. Since then, he has served as the
NASA Flight Surgeon in Space Shuttle Medical Operations and as the
Medical Operations Lead for the International Space Station (ISS).
Barratt spent over 12 months working and training in the Cosmonaut
Training Center, Star City, Russia, in support of the Mir-18/STS-71
mission and was the lead crew surgeon for the first expedition crew
to the ISS. He was selected as an astronaut mission specialist in
July 2000, and is currently in training for long-duration flight on
the ISS.

Roe has more than 20 years experience in engineering, technical and

managerial positions, working for both government and private
industry. Her background includes two years in NASA center
leadership, four years in International Space Station program
management, nine years in technical management and project
engineering and five years experience in radio frequency
communications test and payload systems engineering.

The Norfolk Public Schools team, including Chesterfield, Oceanair,

Jacox and Campostella Elementary Schools, was named one of NASA's
2006 Explorer School Teams in May. The schools started the program
this fall and will continue the partnership for the next three years.

The NASA Explorer School (NES) program is sponsored by NASA to help

educators and students join NASA's mission of discovery through
educational activities and special learning opportunities tailored to
promote science, mathematics and technology applications and career
explorations.

Over the next three years, students in the NES program will
participate in videoconferences with scientists and engineers at
NASA. Norfolk teachers will also take NASA hands-on activities to
their students to provide exciting learning experiences in the
science, mathematics and technology fields.

To learn more about the NES program, please visit:

http://explorerschools.nasa.gov
For more information on research at NASA, visit:

www.nasa.gov

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