30th Anniversary: Framingham State Hosting Event Celebrating the Legacy of the Space Shuttle Challenger Crew

The community is invited to attend a special event on January 28 at Framingham State University entitled Inspiring the Future: 30 Years Since Challenger, celebrating the legacy of the Space Shuttle Challenger Crew.

On January 28, 1986, the NASA Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, killing its seven member crew, including Framingham State Alumna Christa Corrigan McAuliffe ’70, the First Teacher in Space.

The tragedy inspired the creation of the Challenger Center for Space Science Education, an organization with over 40 Challenger Learning Centers across the country, including one at Framingham State’s Christa Corrigan McAuliffe Center. The legacy of the crew lives on through the thousands of children each year who are inspired to pursue science and engineering during visits to the centers.

Framingham State will celebrate that legacy during an event on Thursday, Jan. 28, featuring a keynote address from NASA Astronaut Catherine “Cady” Coleman, a UMass Amherst alumna and veteran of two space shuttle missions and one to the International Space Station.

“The first time I visited the Challenger Learning Center at Framingham State and saw the expressions on the students’ faces as they were transformed into astronauts, scientists and engineers, I understood the wonderful legacy of Christa McAuliffe and the entire Challenger Crew,” said Framingham State University President Javier Cevallos,in a press release.

“The Center makes science come alive for students and leaves them with an experience they won’t soon forget,” said Cevallos.

The speaking program will kick off at 5 p.m. in Dwight Hall Performing Arts Center and will be hosted by Framingham State University McAuliffe Center Director Irene Porro. The program will include remarks from Massachusetts Secretary of Education Jim Peyser and Tess Caswell, a PhD candidate at Brown University who is currently pursuing her dream of flying in space. Longtime Framingham State McAuliffe Center Director Mary Liscombe, who retired in 2013, will talk about the history of the challenger center.

This special anniversary event is free and open to the community, but tickets are required.

Tickets and information about parking on the the University’s campus can be found at christa.org/30th.