Kathryn Clark to Address Tech Grads Saturday

Kathryn Clark, vice chair of the Board of Trustees, will be the featured speaker at the university's Midyear Commencement Saturday, Dec. 10.

The university will recognize the achievements of more than 400 graduates. A total of eight associate degrees and 268 bachelor's degrees will be awarded. In addition, 106 master's degree recipients and 19 PhD graduates will be honored.

Clark, a former chief scientist with NASA, is president of Docere, a consulting company specializing in science and education. Among its clients are the Jean-Michel Cousteau Society, the Argos Foundation, the National Marine Sanctuaries and the Sea World Hubbs Institute.

Clark was chief scientist for the International Space Station Program for two years before being named chief scientist for NASA's Human Exploration and the Development of Space Enterprise program in 2002.

While at NASA, her primary interest was in human factors: all the elements necessary for the health, safety and efficiency of crews during long space flights.

In August, she was awarded the NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, the highest honor NASA accords to nongovernment personnel, in part for her work on the Stafford-Covey Task Group, which was formed to oversee NASA's response to the Columbia Accident Investigation Board.

Clark earned her master's and PhD from the University of Michigan and then joined the faculty of the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology in 1993. Clark received the Outstanding International Award from Women in Aerospace and was recently inducted into the National Women's Museum in Dallas. She is also a pilot and is a member of the International Society of Women Pilots.

Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to more than 7,000 students from 55 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, Michigan’s flagship technological university offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business and economics, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.