The National Space Society (NSS) is pleased to congratulate retired Marine Major General and four-time Space Shuttle Astronaut Charles Bolden on his nomination to the office of NASA Administrator and Lori Garver on her nomination to the office of Deputy Administrator. President Barack Obama announced both nominations on Saturday May 23, 2009.
“This is an exciting time for NASA and the space industry as a whole,” said Mark Hopkins, Senior Vice President of NSS. “NASA is rebuilding its human exploration capabilities and the private sector is making real progress toward commercial access to space. Garver understands the importance of both. Bolden has the hands-on experience necessary to guide NASA into the next phase of its mission. We look forward to interacting with Garver and Bolden as they make decisions about the next steps toward a spacefaring future.”
Designated a naval aviator in May 1970, Charles Bolden flew more than 100 combat missions in South Asia in the early 1970’s. Bolden was selected by NASA as an astronaut in 1980, flying four missions aboard the space shuttles Columbia, Discovery and Atlantis. Over the course of these four space flights, Bolden logged more than 680 hours in orbit, assisted in deploying the Hubble Space Telescope, and commanded the first mission that included a Russian cosmonaut as a mission specialist crewmember. He was selected for induction into the Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2006.
Bolden left NASA and returned to the operating forces of the U.S. Marine Corps as the Deputy Commandant of Midshipmen at the Naval Academy, in Annapolis, Maryland in June of 1994. Before retiring in 2003, Bolden had attained the rank of Major General and served as the Commanding General, Third Marine Aircraft Wing at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, California. Mr. Bolden retired from the United States Marine Corps on January 1, 2003 after serving 34 and a half years. From April 2003 to December 2004 he was Senior Vice President of TechTrans International, Inc., of Houston, TX. He is currently the CEO of JACKandPANTHER LLC, a small business enterprise providing leadership, military, and aerospace consulting as well as motivational speaking.
Bolden received a Bachelor of Science degree from the U.S. Naval Academy, a Master of Science degree in systems management from the University of Southern California, and is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School at Patuxent River, Maryland.
Most recently, Garver was the President of Capital Space, LLC, and served as Senior Advisor for Space at the Avascent Group, a consulting firm based in Washington, D.C. She was the lead civil space policy advisor for the 2008 Obama presidential campaign and she helped lead the Agency Review Team for NASA during the transition. From 1998 to 2001, Garver served as NASA Associate Administrator for the Office of Policy and Plans. During this period, Garver also served as a primary spokesperson for NASA. Prior to this appointment, she served as a Senior Policy Analyst for the Office of Policy and Plans, and Special Assistant to the Administrator. Garver was the second Executive Director of the newly formed National Space Society that resulted from the merger between the L-5 Society and the National Space Institute. She served in this role for 9 years until her departure for NASA in 1998.
Garver earned B.A. in Political Science and Economics from Colorado College and an M.S. in Science, Technology, and Public Policy from George Washington University. Garver lives in McLean, Virginia with her husband, David Brandt, and their two children, Wesley and Mitchell.
