The Dorothy Vaughan Center in Honor of the Women of Apollo: Recognizing NASA’s Female Trailblazers

by Mia Garza | 2024-06-24

On July 19, the eve of the 55th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing, NASA’s Johnson Space Center will name building 12 the ‘Dorothy Vaughan Center in Honor of the Women of Apollo.’ The building will honor not just Vaughan, but the Women of Apollo who paved the way for NASA’s current robust and diverse workforce.

A black-and-white portrait of a woman with short, curly hair. She is wearing a patterned jacket over a dark blouse, accessorized with a necklace and pearl earrings. An aerial view of a rooftop garden, featuring modern buildings in the background.

Left: Portrait of Dorothy Vaughan, a mathematician, computer programmer, and NASA’s first Black manager. Right: Aerial views of the rooftop garden atop building 12 at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Credit: NASA/Bill Stafford

Vaughan’s NASA career began in 1943 and spanned 28 years. She was a respected mathematician and supervisory leader, and she served as an inspiration for women to achieve as human computers and embrace new electronic computing technologies in support of space missions. Vaughan’s perseverance opened the door for others to follow in her footsteps and continue reaching for the stars in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields.

The program will include remarks from Johnson Director Vanessa Wyche and NASA astronaut Christina Koch, along with a presentation by Texas Southern University's Dr. Thomas F. Freeman Debate Team.

The special occasion will also feature a panel discussion with some of the impactful Women of Apollo and current trailblazers in human spaceflight.

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Moderator:

A professional portrait of a woman with blonde hair, wearing a black blazer and a red top. She stands in front of an American flag and a NASA emblem. — *Official portrait of Debbie Korth, Orion deputy program manager. Credit: NASA/Allison Bills*

Debbie Korth

Based at Johnson Space Center, Debbie Korth is the Orion deputy program manager assisting in the design, development, testing, verification, and certification of NASA’s next-generation human-rated spacecraft for Artemis missions.

Previously, Korth managed NASA's Orion Crew and Service Module office, overseeing the design, development, and testing of the Orion crew and service module and launch abort system. She also served as deputy manager of the Orion Program Planning and Control office and has held various leadership roles since joining the Orion Program in 2008.

Korth began her career at Johnson in 1991, focusing on extravehicular activity and mission operations planning. She transitioned to Life Sciences, managing space flight hardware for the Space Shuttle and International Space Station Programs. She served as project manager for numerous space medical experiments, developed components of the Crew Health Care System on the International Space Station, and collaborated with international partners on multiple spacecraft items and ground research.

Korth holds a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from Texas A&M University.

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Panelists:

Portrait of Sandy Johnson, CEO of Barrios Technology.

Sandy Johnson

Sandy Johnson began her career as an engineer supporting Skylab and the Space Shuttle Program. She has held various positions at Barrios Technology, including technical roles, project management, contracts and pricing, business development, and corporate management. After discovering her talent and passion for business, she purchased Barrios in 1993 and became CEO of the company. Under her leadership, Barrios has grown from $10 million to $125 million in revenue, securing government contracts primarily with NASA and expanding into the commercial space industry.

Johnson is active in several community organizations, including the United Way of Greater Houston, which named her Volunteer of the Year in 2015. She has served on various boards, including the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership, and has received numerous awards, such as the University of Houston-Clear Lake (UHCL) Presidential Medal, the Houston Technology Center’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and NASA’s Distinguished Public Service Medal.

Johnson holds a bachelor's degree in mathematics education from Louisiana Tech University and a Master of Business Administration from the UHCL, both of which have recognized her as a Distinguished Alumnus.

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A portrait of a woman with long, dark, wavy hair, wearing a bright blue blazer over a black top. The background includes the American flag and a NASA emblem. — *Official portrait of Lara Kearney, manager of NASA’s Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility program. Credit: NASA/Robert Markowitz*

Lara Kearney

Lara Kearney is the manager of NASA’s Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility Program. She is responsible for the development, testing, certification, production, and operational management of spacewalk and surface mobility systems for the International Space Station and Artemis missions. Kearney’s NASA career spans nearly 30 years, focusing on building, testing, certifying, and operating human spaceflight hardware. She previously served as the deputy program manager for the Gateway program, part of the agency’s Artemis campaign to return humans to the Moon.

Throughout her career, Kearney has been recognized for her leadership and contributions to space exploration, receiving accolades such as NASA’s Spaceflight Awareness Leadership Award, the Silver Snoopy, the Outstanding Leadership Medal, the Presidential Rank Award, and the 2022 NASA Federal Engineer of the Year Award.

Kearney holds a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in biomedical engineering from Texas A&M University, as well as an Executive Master of Business Administration from the Naval Postgraduate School.

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A portrait of a female astronaut with short, curly brown hair, wearing an orange NASA spacesuit in front of a black background. The suit features an American flag patch on the shoulder and NASA insignia on the chest. — *Official portrait of Christina Hammock Koch, NASA astronaut and Artemis II mission specialist. Credit: NASA/Josh Valcarcel*

Christina Hammock Koch

Christina Koch served as a flight engineer on the International Space Station for Expeditions 59, 60, and 61. During her missions, Koch conducted six spacewalks, set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman with 328 days in space, and participated in the first all-female spacewalk. She is currently assigned as a mission specialist for NASA’s Artemis II mission.

Before becoming an astronaut, Koch worked in space science instrument development and remote scientific field engineering. Following her spaceflight, Koch served as Branch Chief of the Assigned Crew Branch in the Astronaut Office and later as assistant for technical integration for Johnson Director Vanessa Wyche.

Koch's numerous awards include the Neil Armstrong Award of Excellence, Astronautics Engineer Award, Global ATHENA Leadership Award, and NASA Group Achievement Award.

Koch earned bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering and physics and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from North Carolina State University. She also studied abroad at the University of Ghana and later received an honorary Ph.D. from North Carolina State University.

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A portrait of a woman with long, curly black hair, wearing a light beige blazer over a matching top. — *Andrea Mosie, senior sample processor and lab manager in the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Division.*

Andrea Mosie

Imagine being able to touch history each and every day. For almost five decades, Andrea Mosie has done just that. She is the senior scientist specialist who oversees the 842 pounds of Apollo lunar samples. When Mosie began her career in the 1970s in the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Division at Johnson, she was one of the only women working in her area of curation. Now, the section has a number of female scientists responsible for the curation of samples from each of NASA's sample return missions.

This trailblazer’s craft quickly became her calling when she realized that a person is never too young to learn about space rocks and their potential to increase knowledge of the Moon and the universe. As a result, she taught STEM enrichment and curation classes to inner-city elementary, middle, and high school students across Texas.

She was a recipient of the NASA Exceptional Public Service Medal, the Huston-Tillotson University Outstanding Alumna Award, and the Special Scientific Achievement Award for providing lunar samples to research scientists and educators worldwide.

Mosie holds a bachelor's degree in chemistry and mathematics from Huston-Tillotson University and a master's degree in physical science and geology from the UHCL.