Sharon Christa McAuliffe was selected as the primary candidate for the NASA Teacher in Space Project in July 1985 and died in the explosion of the Challenger on January 28, 1986. In the period of time from her selection to the flight, she captured the minds and the hearts of the nation. Her dedication to the teaching profession was portrayed in her statement, "I touch the future: I teach."
McAuliffe was born in Boston on Sept. 2, 1948. She received a Bachelor of Arts from Framingham State College, Framingham, Ma. and a master's degree in education from Bowie State College, Bowie, Md. Prior to her selection as NASA Teacher in Space, McAuliffe taught English, economics, law, American history, and a course she developed for high school students titled, "The American Woman."
"Christa McAuliffe's gift to us is not in the skies but here on Earth. From everything you can read she was a teacher before she went up and she intended to be a teacher when she returned. In death, her legacy is to give her fellow professionals new dignity and honor. Thanks to Christa, each of them can say with pride, 'I'm a teacher too'. "
- Art Buchwald
Pulitzer Prize winning author and columnist