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The Hon. Ron Nirenberg, Mayor of the City of San Antonio, will open the 2020 Awards Dinner and that Dr. Bernard A. Harris, Jr. will be the Keynote Speaker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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June Scobee Rodgers, Ph.D., the widow of Challenger Space\nShuttle Commander Richard “Dick” Scobee, has dedicated her time and\nenergy to continuing the crew’s educational mission. Immediately following the\ntragedy ,Dr. Rodgers channeled grief into action and led the Challenger shuttle\nfamilies, along with others, to create Challenger Center-a living tribute to\ntheir loved ones, each year hundreds of thousands of students participate in\nscience, technology, engineering, and math(STEM) focused programs at Challenger\nCenters across the US including one at San Antonio College(known as the Scobee\nEducation Center) where Dr. Rodgers attended after graduation from Harlandale\nHigh School. Dr. Rodgers is an educator (having taught in every grade-level\nclassroom from kindergarten through college), author, and speaker, and an\ninspiration to everyone she meets. In 2015, Dr. Rodgers received the distinguished\nAlan Shepard Technology in Education Award.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Col. Thomas M. McNish, M.D., MPH (USAF Ret.), Lt. McNish, a\n1964 graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, was shot down in his\nF-105 Thunderchief over North Vietnam and was taken as a Prisoner of War on\nSeptember 4, 1966 while flying his 45th combat mission in Southeast Asia. After\nspending 2,373 days in captivity, he was released during Operation Homecoming\non March 4,1973, after a brief hospitalization to recover from his injuries he\nbegan his studies to become a physician first taking pre-medicine classes at\nEmory University and then at Emory University School of Medicine. Capt. McNish\ngraduated from Emory University School of Medicine in June 1978, interned at\nthe University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio and then began a\nresidency in Aerospace Medicine at Brooks AFB, Texas where he graduated in June\n1983.During this time he was selected for the USAF Pilot-Physician Program, had\na distinguished career in the USAF and retired from the USAF on July 1, 1994 as\nCommand Surgeon in the Office of the Air Force Reserve at the Pentagon. Col.\nMcNish is a member of and currently serves as President of the 4th Allied\nP.O.W. Wing (“NAMPOWs”).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The United States Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine (USAFSAM)\nat Brooks AFB, Texas. USAFSAM is the United States Air Force (USAF)\norganization focused on education, research, and worldwide operational\nconsultation in aerospace and operational medicine. It began operations on\nJanuary 19, 1918 at Hazelhurst Field, Mineola, Long Island, N.Y. in August 1926.\nThe School was moved to Brooks Field in San Antonio in October 1931 it was\nmoved to Randolph Field. On May 10, 1957 a groundbreaking ceremony was held for\nthe construction of the New School of Aviation Medicine at Brooks AFB. The\nfirst Primary Course in Aviation Medicine was held at the new campus on Brooks\nAFB on 11 August 1959.On 8 August 1961 the School name was changed to The\nSchool of Aerospace Medicine. On 21 November 1963, President John F. Kennedy\ndedicated the new school complex at Brooks AFB (the photo below is of JFK on\nthat day speaking with an airmen in a pressure chamber)the day before he was\nassassinated in Dallas. This was President Kennedy’s last official act as\npresident and the location of his famous over the wall speech inviting the\nnation to embrace space exploration. Accepting the award on behalf of USAFSAM\nat Brooks AFB,TX at the Induction Ceremony will be Lt. Gen. Thomas W. Travis, M.D.\n(USAF Ret.), former Surgeon General of the USAF, and a former commander of\nUSAFSAM, Lt. Gen. Travis, M.D. currently serves as Senior Vice President,\nUniversity Programs, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In addition to the Induction of the Class of 2020, the San\nAntonio Aviation and Aerospace Hall of Fame will honor all NAMPOWs who will be\nrepresented at the Hall of Fame by Col. McNish, Col. Joseph E. Milligan, DVM, Ph.D.\n(USAF Ret.-Past President of the 4th Allied P.O.W. Wing), and other current\nmembers of the Wing who will be in attendance at the 2020 Hall of Fame. Pictured\nbelow is the logo of NAMPOWs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Harris is the Chief Executive Officer of the National\nMath + Science Initiative and leads the organization’s efforts to improve\nteacher effectiveness and student achievement in STEM education across the\ncountry. A veteran astronaut, Dr. Harris has logged more than 438 hours and\ntraveled over 7.2 million miles in space. He was the first African-American to\ncomplete a spacewalk. Brig. Gen. David E. Petersen (USAF Ret.), Executive Vice\nPresident of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, will be the MC of this\nhistoric event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To learn more about how you can help honor San Antonio\u2019s aviation and aerospace history, POWs, and STEM teachers you are invited to visit the 2020 Hall of Fame web page<\/a> and the DHF Facebook page where further updates will be posted as plans progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For information on the mission of the San Antonio Aviation\nand Aerospace Hall of Fame and to view a listing of its cooperating\norganizations, you are invited to visit the SAAAHoF web page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n