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Hall of Fame Astronaut Honors UTCS Student

Posted by Staci R Norman on Thursday, August 15, 2013

Lecture & Scholarship Presentation Free and Open to Public

Austin, TX – Space Shuttle astronaut and University of Texas alumnus Bob Crippen will visit the school to present student Dustin Carlino with a $10,000 scholarship from the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation (ASF) during a public lecture and ceremony, Friday, Sept. 13, 2013 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. in the Student Activity Center Auditorium.

During the visit, Crippen will share his experiences as a NASA astronaut who spent 565 hours in space during four space shuttle missions. Crippen’s talk is free and open to the public.

“I look forward to this year’s Astronaut Scholarship presentation at my alma mater, the University of Texas,” said Crippen, who graduated from the university in 1960 with a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering. “Dustin Carlino has demonstrated exceptional achievement, talent and drive, and I am proud to be recognizing him on behalf of ASF in the company of his mentors, peers and the greater UT community.”

Astronaut Scholarships are the largest monetary awards available to United States science, technology, engineering and math students based solely on merit. ASF has awarded more than $3.7 million to deserving students around the U.S. to date.

Dustin J. Carlino is a senior who majors in computer science in the College of Natural Sciences and maintains a high GPA. Carlino has completed internships at two of the world's largest software companies, Google and Facebook, and has built some early entrepreneurial experience as chief technology officer and software engineer of startup company RoommateMe, LLC. His ongoing research in autonomous traffic simulation has earned him numerous accolades, one of which was acceptance at the Intelligent Transportation Systems Conference (2012). Carlino is looking forward to a future career that combines research and industry.

“Robert Crippen is a distinguished alumnus and a shining example of how UT helps prepare students to change the world—and even explore new worlds,” said UT president William Powers Jr. “Dustin embodies that same potential. I congratulate him on this prestigious award and thank the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation for recognizing our wonderful students.”

About ASF

The Astronaut Scholarship Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 1984 by the six surviving members of America’s original Mercury program. Its mission is to aid the United States in retaining its world leadership in science and technology by providing scholarships for college students who exhibit motivation, imagination and exceptional performance in these fields. ASF funds twenty-

eight $10,000 scholarships annually and has awarded more than $3.7 million to deserving students nation-wide. Today, more than 100 astronauts from the Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, Space Shuttle and Space Station programs have joined in this educational endeavor. For more information, call 321-455-7012 or visit www.AstronautScholarship.org.


CONTACT

Andy McIlwraith
andy@astronautscholarship.org
321.455.7015