"Dreaming Big: The Past, Present, and Future of Human Space Exploration"
Charles served as the 12th NASA Administrator (2009-17) and was the first African American and only the second former astronaut to hold the positoin. As NASA Administrator he oversaw the transition from 30 years of Space Shuttle missions to a new era of exploration focused on full utilization of the International Space Station, among other accomplishments. He was commander of the Space Shuttle Atlantis in 1992 and Space Shuttle Discovery in 1994 and flew two other missions as a pilot. His mentor in the astronaut program was Ronald McNair, N.C. A&T graduate and fellow South Carolinian. He flew over 100 combat missions during the Vietnam War.
Maj. Gen. Charles Bolden, Jr. (USMC-Ret.) was inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2006 and has been the 12th Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) since 2009. He began his duties as head of the Agency on July 17, 2009. He led the agency in developing cutting-edge technologies for the missions of tomorrow. The Agency’s dynamic science activities under Bolden include the Curiosity rover landing on Mars, the launch of a spacecraft to Jupiter, and the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope.