National Space Club and Foundation

We're thrilled to announce the newly elected Board of Directors for the National Space Club! Join us in congratulating these outstanding leaders who will guide our mission forward: ✨President: Robbie Sabathier, United Launch Alliance ✨ Vice President: Meghan Allen, Space Foundation ✨ Awards Chair: Megan Marsh, SAIC ✨ Treasurer: Kevin “Morty” Mortensen, BAE Systems ✨ Youth Education Chair: Matice Wright-Springer, Booz Allen Hamilton ✨ Membership Chair: Tami Plofchan, Lockheed Martin

Today, we’re spotlighting another one of the National Space Club’s exceptional leaders, Sharon Dunbar! Sharon has proven to be a vital member of NSCF’s Board of Directors, all while serving in her current role of Vice President, Cross-Company Business at General Dynamics Systems. On why she joined the National Space Club & Foundation: “I’ve been a long-time admirer of how the National Space Club inspires and recognizes our nation’s military-civil space community, student scholars, teachers, and mentors. It’s been a privilege to be part of the National Space Club team and see firsthand their incredible dedication and impact.” On her favorite thing about NSCF: “While it’s tough to pick just one ‘favorite thing’ about the National Space Club, I’ll go with the annual Goddard Dinner. Where else can you find nearly 2,000 members of the space community coming together to celebrate the accomplishments of those who distinguished themselves in their unique space quest?” On why the Space Club is important: “As a 501(c)(3), the NSCF is a one-of-a-kind influencer in its space (pun intended) by promoting the space exploration, innovation, and security so vital to America’s national and economic security.”

Today, we proudly shine a spotlight on Megan Marsh, one of NSCF’s invaluable leaders. Since becoming a member of the Space Club’s Board of Directors, Megan has made outstanding contributions, all while expertly balancing her responsibilities as Chief Solutions Architect at SAIC. On why she joined the Space Club’s Board of Directors: “I knew I wanted to join the NSC Board after one epic Goddard dinner spent meeting and mingling with Buzz Aldrin and Jeff Bezos. The NSC's ability to connect leaders in the space industry with revolutionary thinkers and innovators can lead to breakthroughs and advancements that can benefit humanity as a whole. And as someone who is passionate about space exploration and innovation, being part of the NSC’s board of directors provides opportunities to make a real impact.”

Today, we’re spotlighting another prominent leader of the National Space Club & Foundation, Kevin (Morty) Mortensen! Morty has proven to be an instrumental member of NSCF’s Board of Directors, all while balancing his role as Vice President, Business Development, Strategy & Growth at BAE Systems, Inc. On why he joined the National Space Club & Foundation: “My first interaction with the Space Club was in 2007 when I worked for the Secretary of the Air Force’s Legislative Liaison team. I led the Space portfolio and I was able to attend the 2008 Goddard Memorial Dinner. I was amazed at the celebration of Space achievement from across the Space enterprise. I was thoroughly impressed with the recognition and support of the next generation of Space leaders – those who participated in the National Space Club and Foundation’s scholarship program.” On his favorite thing about NSCF: “My favorite thing is the recognition of our students and supporting their efforts for advancing Space technologies! I think it was a brilliant decision to have the Goddard Scholarship recipient be the keynote speaker at the annual dinner. It’s so incredible to be able to listen to the scholarship recipient and be inspired by them; their accomplishments, passions, and dreams shared with the 2,000 Goddard Dinner attendees… everyone leaves the event knowing that the future of the Space enterprise is in good hands.” On why the Space Club is important: “The NSCF is paving the way for Space excellence. The NSCF is important because it allows us to support the education of the next generation and recognize the amazing accomplishments of the annual award winner. Space is in great hands today and in the future.”

Today, we’re spotlighting another leader at the National Space Club, Josh Hartman! Josh has proven to be an engaged and valuable member of NSCF’s Board of Directors, while also serving in his current role as Chief Growth and Strategy Officer at LightRidge Solutions. On why he joined The National Space Club & Foundation: “I joined the NSCF because I think that STEM is absolutely critical the future of our country. I approach this from more of a National Security perspective and would like to be able to influence those who might choose the Space Force or Intelligence Community as a future career path.”

Today, we’re spotlighting another leader of NSCF’s, our Awards Chairperson, Meghan Allen! Meghan has proven to be an instrumental and engaged member of the National Space Club’s Board of Directors, while also serving in her role as Senior Vice President at Space Foundation. On why she joined the Space Club: “When I was first asked to join the National Space Club, I thought, ‘oh great, the Goddard Dinner…everyone loves Space Prom where you get to spend the night with 2000 of your best space friends,’ but as I looked deeper into the organization, I realized they do so much more. One of my favorite parts about the role I play in our industry is the ability to bring the space community together, from Government to industry to our next generation of space leaders.” On her favorite thing about the Space Club: “Hands down, every year, my favorite task as part of my role on the board is to review the applications of over 100 students who apply every year to be our key scholarship winner and get to present the keynote address at the dinner. Once we narrow down the pool, we interview about a dozen of the candidates. It is so inspirational and gives me so much hope for our future generation of space leaders. The innovation, creativeness, and bold ideas the awardees have are simply amazing.  We are hearing from the best and the brightest talent that will make up our workforce in years to come. The decision to select a single award winner gets harder and harder every year - so hard that this year we decided to put our runner-up on stage as well.” On why NSCF is important: “The mission of the NSCF is so important to the next generation of space leaders to help the United States remain the leader in space power. Youth education is a top priority for the NSCF! As leaders in this industry, we need to take responsibility in incentivizing and motivating the next generation and the NSCF programs do just that!”

Today, we’re spotlighting another one of The National Space Club & Foundation’s prominent leaders, Lisa Wood! Lisa has proven to be a steadfast presence on the Space Club’s Board of Directors, serving as our Youth Education Chairperson, all while balancing her role as Senior Director, Civil Space, Space and Mission Systems at BAE Systems, Inc. On why she joined The National Space Club: “I joined the National Space Club because I believe its mission, and specifically the Youth Education program, plays a critical role in supporting space leadership and education.” On her favorite thing about the Space Club: “Working with and getting to know our scholars and interns. They are truly inspiring and remind me why I got into this business 37 years ago.” On why NSCF is important: “NSCF is important because it serves to bring the community together and reminds us that what we do is important and that how we do it matters.”

Today we’re spotlighting another exceptional leader of the National Space Club & Foundation, our Vice President, Robbie Sabathier! Robbie has proven to be a vital member of NSCF’s Board of Directors, while balancing her role as Vice President, Government Operations and Strategic Communications at United Launch Alliance.   On her favorite thing about the National Space Club: “The National Space Club is committed to serving our future leaders in the aerospace industry and a great way to help young adults aspiring to grow their careers. There is a lot of enthusiasm from our community to help students and early career professionals through our scholarships, awards, and internships. We are helping to “raise” the next aerospace leaders, and that alone is quite rewarding, but the Space Club also facilitates the best party in DC, and who doesn’t love a good Prom? This event brings everyone from our space community together for one night. The event is electric. As the Vice President of the 2024 National Space Club, I had the honor of watching the dinner through the eyes of our student keynote award winner, Abigail Frank. For one night, Abigail, and the other students at the dinner, met and connected with hundreds of potential mentors in our community. This dinner is a priceless experience for our young people interested in a career in this community.”   On why the Space Club is important: “The importance of the National Space Club and Foundation is visible through the outstanding interaction cultivated between our industry and the government; bringing together the best in our business to support our future generations. It is truly energizing to be able to serve with my industry colleagues knowing we are positively impacting the lives of many young space professionals.”

We're thrilled to launch a new campaign shining the spotlight on the exceptional leaders at the National Space Club & Foundation, and we're kicking it off with none other than our remarkable President, Joe Vealencis! Joe has been an invaluable member of NSCF’s Board of Directors, also juggling his role as Vice President of Government Relations at Maxar. On why he joined the Space Club: “My first experience with the National Space Club and Foundation was back in 2014 when I was invited to be a guest at the annual Goddard Dinner. I recall it being a wonderful experience, but the mission of the Space Club never came into focus for me. In 2015, I joined the leadership of the National Reconnaissance Office, and the Space Club once again came into my orbit. I took the time to learn about the charitable mission of the Club and its focus on youth STEM education - something that immediately resonated with me as someone who really enjoyed my science classes in college (Physics was my favorite). America is full of innovators who have great ideas to improve our lives and those of humankind, made possible by brilliant engineers, mathematicians, artists, and scientists of every discipline. I think supporting the Space Club supports our next generation of innovators.”   On his favorite thing about the National Space Club & Foundation: “It’s definitely engaging with the students. Not only the interns we help sponsor - who are terrific - but the hundreds I’ve met virtually over the years as part of the Keynote Scholarship selection process. At the Goddard Dinner, the 2000-person audience only gets to meet the Keynote Scholarship winner and the runner up, but I get to meet over 100 more virtually as the Board reviews their academic records, reads glowing letters of recommendations, and watches a recording of them speak on how space inspires them. It’s exhausting and takes about 20 hours of time during the month of December, but the output speaks for itself when you find the likes of Abigail and Will - this year’s keynote speaker and runner up.”   On why the National Space Club & Foundation is important: “We are an apolitical charitable organization in a city that seems to thrive on hyper partisanship. We welcome participation regardless of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, etc. It is personally rewarding to support an organization whose focus on STEM education really, at its core, strives to make the world a better place for all.”

Today, the sky treats us to a breathtaking solar eclipse. If you don’t have proper eye protection, or you aren’t in the path of totality, don’t fret! There are a multitude of ways you can tune into the event:   From 1pm – 4pm ET today, NASA will broadcast its official 2024 solar eclipse coverage, which will include expert commentary and on-location coverage of the eclipse: https://lnkd.in/enNhqq9K If you’d like a quieter feed, NASA also has a telescope livestream courtesy of the organization’s partners and collaborators. It will air video from different telescopes across the path of totality showing the sun in various wavelengths of light. You can watch on YouTube: https://lnkd.in/eeHvqdne Want to see what the eclipse looks like from the edge of space? The Nationwide Eclipse Ballooning Project has links to a bunch of YouTube pages that will offer streaming views from that vantage point: https://lnkd.in/gq2gZnPm Finally, NASA will launch three sounding rockets into the moon’s shadow during the eclipse to study changes in the ionosphere. If you’d like to watch those launches from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, you can see that on YouTube as well: https://lnkd.in/g4UJfXrN