14 DAY TRIAL // For the better part of three decades, the NASA John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Cape Canaveral, Florida, has been the home of the Space Shuttle Program. All the orbiters that ever flew, starting with Enterprise, were based here, and the facility has been heavily modified and augmented from other spaceports to allow for shuttle launches. Until last year, the Center had two launch pads, which supported spacecrafts simultaneously. About 3,200 of the world's most well-prepared engineers have kept things going, and now they all stand to lose their jobs in November. Top NASA officials are now taking steps to address this issue, Space reports.
The federal government and the Obama Administration recognize the risk the space agency is at right now. If programs to keep this highly-skilled workforce within NASA are not devised soon, then these individuals could rightfully decide to move to the private sector, where their efforts would be compensated to their true value. If this happens, the agency would lose one of the largest advantages that make it stand out from the crowd, and which have turned it into a leader in innovation over the years. That's why NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, and Deputy Administrator Lori Garver, have just announced the Brevard County of Florida has been awarded about $15 million in grant money, in order to try and retain the workforce currently employed at the KSC.
The decision to award the grant was announced two days ago by US Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, who was on a visit in Florida at the time. Joined by Garver and US Rep. Suzanne Kosmas (Democrat, Florida), the federal official visited the KSC, where she had a chance to speak to the workers. She mentioned that the grant was specifically targeted at employees of major aerospace contractors that currently conduct their activity at the KSC, including Houston-based United Space Alliance, the ASRC Aerospace Corp., and Boeing. All of these corporations are operators of the three remaining space shuttles.
“During nearly three decades of continuous space shuttle flights, these dedicated and talented workers have helped move our nation – and the world as a whole – forward in a broad range of disciplines. Today, these hard-working Americans need and deserve our support, and I am pleased that this grant will allow them to upgrade their skills further and gain access to work opportunities in high demand industries,” Solis said in a public press statement.