Editor’s Note: This release is an annual roundup of information that is
intended for reporters and editors in the business and education beats.

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., contributed $829
million to Alabama’s economy in fiscal year 2001 — a 6 percent increase
over fiscal year 2000 spending – and significantly more than spending in any
other state.

Included in the 2001 spending was $247 million in salaries for civil service
personnel and related costs, as well as travel. Also included was $582
million spent on locally procured services, prime contractor and
subcontractor support, and local construction.

Since it was established in 1960, the Marshall Center has had budget
responsibility for more than $69 billion. When yearly figures are adjusted
for inflation, this total is equivalent to more than $169 billion in today’s
dollar value.

In addition, during 2001, The Boeing Company spent approximately $94
million in NASA funding in North Alabama for International Space Station
hardware development.

Another $47 million was spent by the Marshall Center for NASA
programs where Marshall had a supporting role, and an additional $18 million
was spent on programs where Marshall performed work for other agencies.

Marshall received approximately 15.5 percent – or $2.2 billion – of NASA’s
total budget of $14.3 billion during fiscal 2001. By program areas, 73
percent of Marshall’s budget was spent for Human Exploration and Development
of Space, including Space Shuttle and Space Station activities; 26 percent
for Space Science, Earth Science, Aero-Space Technology and Biological &
Physical Research activities; and the about 1 percent was spent on Strategic
Support of Marshall Center programs.

Also in 2001, approximately $70 million in retirement annuities were paid to
2,460 Marshall retirees residing in Alabama. The 1,680 retirees in
Huntsville and Madison received $47 million of that amount.

Since the Marshall Center’s creation, a total of $5.2 billion in federal
salaries have been paid. In 2001, Marshall civil service employees
collectively paid about $192 million in federal income taxes and about $7
million in Alabama state income taxes.

At the end of September 2001, Marshall’s permanent and temporary civil
service employees totaled 2,740, including employees at resident offices at
prime contractor facilities and at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility near New
Orleans.

Of that workforce, 2,262 were college graduates, with 1,487 holding
bachelor’s degrees. There were 183 employees with doctorate degrees and 592
with master’s degrees in the fields of engineering and science —
predominantly mathematics and physics – as well as business administration
and other disciplines.

During 2001, 23,653 contractor personnel were engaged in work for the
Marshall Center, including 3,264 in mission support, 11,141 on prime
contract work and 9,248 as subcontractors and vendors. Of the total, 6,878
worked in Alabama. Additionally, 463 contractors were associated with
International Space Station work being done by Boeing in Huntsville, and 802
jobs were related to other NASA work supported by Marshall.

Also during fiscal 2001, approximately 62,000 people toured Marshall,
including educators, conference and symposium visitors and news media.
Attendance at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center — Marshall’s official NASA
Visitor Center — was 341,411 for the year.

In addition, Marshall’s education programs reached more than 84,269 students
and 20,263 teachers and faculty representing all 50 states during the year.
And the Marshall Center donated $5.5 million in research equipment and made
some $203 million in grants, contracts and cooperative agreements through
its education programs. Marshall’s education program also recorded 609
partnerships and collaborations with other federal, state and local
programs, professional societies, nonprofit organizations, industry and
contractor communities, and with all levels of the educational community,
but primarily secondary education.

Continuing its ongoing work in the community, Marshall employees and
retirees volunteered last year to participate in the NASA Project LASER
(Learning About Science, Engineering and Research) Program, serving locally
as speakers, tutors, consultants and science fair judges. Marshall’s
Educator Resource Center also distributed more than 113,014 pieces of
NASA-produced materials to the 5,711 educators it contacted through
workshops, on-site visits and postal and electronic requests. Staff at the
Educator Resource Center developed and delivered 153 workshops and overviews
to 1,408 teachers and home-school parents. Additionally, NASA’s education
programs reached more than 10.2 million participants electronically.

The Marshall Center also gives back to the community through monthly Red
Cross Blood Drives – collecting 959 pints of blood in fiscal 2001 from civil
service and on-site contractors – and by contributing to the Combined
Federal Campaign — collecting $559,703 in fiscal 2001, of which $294,893
was designated to help agencies in Alabama.

As Marshall marks its 41st year in Alabama and looks to the future, the
Center continues its role as a vital contributor to America’s future in
space — as well as to the economy of Huntsville and the state.