WASHINGTON – Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced that the committee has approved the Fiscal Year 2008 Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations bill, which includes $500,000 Sen. Hutchison secured for the Manned Space Flight Education Foundation in Houston to further develop the National Virtual Space Community Model. The bill will now be considered and voted on by the full Senate.
“The National Virtual Space Community will inspire the next generation of astronauts, physicists, and mathematicians,” Sen. Hutchison said.
The Manned Space Flight Education Foundation, led by Space Center Houston, will use the funding to expand virtual space communities across the nation. A Virtual Space Community consists of a school district, a community organization, and an informal learning institution which team up together to create space science-oriented learning exercises for teachers and students. This funding will provide personnel, community development, online development and curriculum development as well as museum resources and exhibits for designated communities across the country. These communities will create exhibits and conduct virtual training sessions at the designated learning institutions.
