Walter Isaacson

Tricia Verified account @LouisianaModelY · 5d

Big news for Acadiana: @ULLafayette is building ties with @NASA as Starbase Louisiana grows.

UL President Dr. Ramesh Kolluru led a group to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston to explore working together on research, education, and workforce training.

The details:
• Talks covered student internships, faculty work with NASA, joint research, and courses shaped by what the industry needs
• NASA shared the skills the next generation of aerospace workers will need
• The two sides discussed a possible framework for working together, though nothing formal yet
• At least six UL alumni worked on Artemis II, NASA's first crewed mission around the Moon in more than 50 years
• In 2007, UL became the first Louisiana university to launch a student-built satellite. Two more have followed, and a fourth is in the works
• Starting Fall 2027, UL plans to offer an aerospace engineering concentration in mechanical engineering, plus a minor in aerospace and autonomous systems
• A space computing systems concentration and minor is also in development

UL says SpaceX's spaceport near Pecan Island is speeding up the growth of Louisiana's aerospace industry and creating demand for skilled workers.

Pictured: NASA's Edgar O. Castro, chief of the Propulsion and Power Division at Johnson Space Center, with UL President Dr. Ramesh Kolluru and College of Engineering Dean Dr. Ahmed Khattab.
Photo: Amy Windsor / University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Source: UL Lafayette

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