[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 51 (Wednesday, March 25, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E765]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      TRIBUTE TO FORMER NASA ADMINISTRATOR DR. MICHAEL D. GRIFFIN

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. KEN CALVERT

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 25, 2009

  Mr. CALVERT. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor and pay tribute to 
an individual whose dedication and contributions to the aerospace and 
aeronautics communities, and to our country, have been exceptional. The 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has been fortunate 
to have a dynamic and dedicated leader who has given his time and 
talent to advance U.S. interests in space, science and aeronautics. On 
January 20, 2009, Administrator Michael Griffin concluded nearly four 
years of service as the NASA Administrator.
  Dr. Griffin was nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed 
by the United States Senate as the 11th Administrator of the National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration. He began his term on April 14, 
2005. As Administrator, Mike led the NASA team and managed its 
resources to advance the U.S. Vision for Space Exploration which 
included returning the space shuttle to flight, completing assembly of 
the International Space Station and development of the Ares rocket and 
Orion crew vehicle to return us to the moon and eventually to Mars.
  Prior to his tenure with NASA, Griffin served as Space Department 
Head at Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory in 
Laurel, Maryland. He was previously President and Chief Operating 
Officer of In-Q-Tel, Inc., and also served in several positions within 
Orbital Sciences Corporation, Dulles, Virginia, including Chief 
Executive Officer of Orbital's Magellan Systems division and General 
Manager of the Space Systems Group. Griffin also previously served as 
chief engineer and as associate administrator for exploration at NASA, 
and as deputy for technology at the Strategic Defense Initiative 
Organization.
  Mike Griffin is a true rocket scientist and has the post-secondary 
degrees to prove it. He received a bachelor's degree in physics from 
Johns Hopkins University; a master's degree in aerospace science from 
Catholic University of America; a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from 
the University of Maryland; a master's degree in electrical engineering 
from the University of Southern California; a master's degree in 
applied physics from Johns Hopkins University; a master's degree in 
business administration from Loyola College; and a master's degree in 
Civil Engineering from George Washington University.
  Mike Griffin is a certified flight instructor with instrument and 
multiengine ratings. In addition, he is a member of the National 
Academy of Engineering and International Academy of Astronautics, an 
Honorary Fellow of the American Astronautical Society, a Senior Member 
of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, and a previous 
adjunct professor at the University of Maryland, Johns Hopkins 
University, and George Washington University, where he taught courses 
in spacecraft design, applied mathematics, guidance and navigation, 
compressible flow, computational fluid dynamics, spacecraft attitude 
control, astrodynamics and introductory aerospace engineering. He is 
the lead author of more than two dozen technical papers, as well as the 
textbook, ``Space Vehicle Design.'' Mike is also the recipient of the 
Department of Defense's Distinguished Public Service Medal, the highest 
award given to a non-government employee.
  Mike has demonstrated his ongoing passion for NASA and provided 
tremendous leadership for the agency in the Second Space Age. I am 
proud to call Mike a fellow American and friend. I know that many 
people around the country are grateful for his service and join me in 
saluting his many achievements. Whatever the future holds for him, 
Godspeed Mike Griffin.

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