Tucson, Arizona: December 15, 2011 – Paragon Space Development Corporation(R) (Paragon) and the Challenger Center for Space Science Education (Challenger Center) are proud to announce that Dr. Lance Bush will be the President and CEO of the Challenger Center. Together, Paragon and Challenger Center worked to create a new leadership team to ensure that the goals of the Challenger Center are met and that America remains strong in the arena of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

“Paragon has always strongly supported science and technology education, we believe it is at the core of America’s future competitiveness. So when it came to our attention that the Challenger Center was looking for a President and CEO, we knew Dr. Bush was the perfect person to lead the Challenger Center and launch its significant expansion in STEM education.” said Taber MacCallum CEO/CTO Paragon Space Development Corp. “Sometimes you instantly know what’s the right thing to do, now maybe more than ever in our history it’s important to inspire our youth, and Lance is the perfect person to do it.”

“Dr. Bush will continue to work with Paragon, serving on our board of directors and providing advice in areas from technology development to NASA’s space exploration programs, as well as new commercial opportunities. We are also excited by this opportunity to develop a new relationship with the Challenger Center.” said Jane Poynter, Chairwoman and President of Paragon Space Development Corp. “We are thrilled to have Dr. Bush as our new President and CEO,” said Dr. Parazynski, chairman of Challenger Center’s board of directors and a former NASA astronaut. “Lance is an exceptional leader, who brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in the aerospace, space science and non-profit sectors. He is a natural fit for our senior management team, and we are delighted to have him at the Challenger Center helm as we launch a significant expansion of our STEM education mission and work with our network of Challenger Learning Centers to achieve new heights.”

“Inspiration, education, innovation, and leadership are hallmarks of our nation’s greatness, and they are what Challenger Center did during its first 25 year of service and will continue to do in the future,” said Dr. Bush. “It is a great honor to be selected as Challenger Center’s new President and CEO, and I look forward to working with our extensive STEM education team of staff members, our Challenger Learning Center educators, friends and volunteers to grow the organization. We must strengthen our nation by building and applying the scientific knowledge that drives innovation, industry, and the human spirit, all of which starts with our school children.”

ABOUT PARAGON: Paragon is the premier provider of environmental controls for extreme and hazardous environments. We design, build, test and operate premier life support systems and leading thermal control products for astronauts, contaminated water divers, and other extreme environment adventurers, as well as for unmanned space and terrestrial applications. Founded in 1993, Paragon is a woman-owned small business headquartered in Tucson, AZ, with additional offices in Houston, TX, Denver, CO and Washington, DC.

ABOUT CHALLENGER CENTER: Using space exploration as a theme and simulations as a vehicle, Challenger Center for Space Science Education and its international network of 47 Challenger Learning Centers create positive educational experiences that raise students’ expectations of success, fosters a long-term interest in STEM, and inspires students to pursue studies and careers in these areas. Challenger Center’s network of Challenger Learning Centers across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and South Korea reach more than 400,000 students each year through simulated space missions and educational programs, and engage over 40,000 educators through missions, teacher workshops and other programs. To learn more about Challenger Center for Space Science Education, visit www.challenger.org.

Media Contacts
Carole Hammond (520) 382-4814 chammond@paragonsdc.com www.ParagonSDC.com
Angie Tene (800) 969-5747 atenne@challenger.org www.challenger.org