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June 30, 2021

Chairwoman Johnson Applauds Announcement of NASA’s Johnson and Kennedy Space Centers Directors

(Washington, DC) – Today, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson named Vanessa Wyche, to serve as the director of the agency’s Johnson Space Center. Janet Petro was named director of the agency’s Kennedy Space Center.

Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) made the following statement.

“Administrator Nelson has selected two exceptional women to lead the Johnson and Kennedy Space Centers. I am confident that Vanessa Wyche, a 31-year NASA veteran, will be an invaluable asset as the United States continues its leadership and operation of the International Space Station (ISS), including its more than twenty years of supporting human occupancy of the ISS, and moves forward on ambitious programs including Orion and Gateway. The Kennedy Center is in equally good hands under the leadership of Janet Petro who has been with the Center since 2007. The Kennedy Space Center is home to NASA’s world-class multi-user spaceport that serves both government and commercial partners’ in human spaceflight launches. In her new role, Director Petro will continue to lead NASA into the next phase of our science and human exploration missions.

“As I often say, NASA is one of the crown jewels of the nation’s R&D enterprise, and equally importantly, it is a source of inspiration for our young people around the world. The appointment of these two women, including the first African American woman, Ms. Wyche, to lead these NASA centers is a reflection of our nation’s diverse talent and will demonstrate to rising generations in STEM that everyone has a place at our nation's impressive scientific institutions.