Astronaut Mark Kelly available to media as Ohio State celebrates legacy of John Glenn’s space flight

Ohio State University will celebrate John Glenn’s legacy on the 50th anniversary of his historic flight aboard Friendship 7 on Monday (2/20) with several special events that media are invited to cover. All events will be held at the Ohio Union, 1739 N. High St.

*Sen. Glenn participates in NASA Future Forum panel. As part of the two-day NASA Future Forum at Ohio State that coincides with the 50th anniversary of Glenn's historic Friendship 7 space flight, Glenn will participate in a panel at 1:30 p.m. in the U.S. Bank Conference Theatre. The panel, “Learning from the Past to Innovate for the Future,” is a retrospective look back at Senator Glenn’s amazing career and also looking toward the bright future in human exploration. He will be joined by space agency officials, Ohio State students, astronauts, scientists, and engineers to discuss the role NASA will play in advancing innovation, technology, science, engineering, education and the economy that benefits Ohio and the nation.
•All forum events (2/20-21) will be carried live on NASA Television and streamed on the Web at: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
•Media representatives interested in attending the forum must contact David Steitz at NASA for credentials at david.steitz@nasa.gov or (202) 358-1730 by 3 p.m. today (2/16). The forum is open to the public, but registration has reached capacity and is closed. SEE: http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2012/feb/HQM12-023_Ohio_Future_Forum.html

*Media availability with astronaut Mark Kelly. Kelly, the keynote speaker for Ohio State’s celebration dinner and commander of the space shuttle Endeavour’s final mission, will be available to talk to reporters from 5:25 to 5:50 p.m. in the Student-Alumni Council Room (2nd floor, facing the Oval). President Gee will be introducing Kelly and also is available to reporters at this time. Unfortunately, due to the short time frame, we are unable to offer one-on-one interviews with Kelly.

*Celebration dinner at 7 p.m. Media are welcome to cover the event in the Archie Griffin Ballroom, including the keynote speech by Mark Kelly, “Endeavour to Succeed.” Proceeds from the dinner benefit faculty, students and programs related to science and technology research and policy at the John Glenn School of Public Affairs and the College of Engineering. Please confirm your attendance for the event with Shelly Hoffman, hoffman.511@osu.edu

The dinner agenda is below:
7 p.m. Event begins
Welcome

Guest Speakers:
“Investing in the Future”
Barbara K. Fergus, member, Board of Advisors, John Glenn School of Public Affairs
“John Glenn: Facets of Public Service”
E. Gordon Gee, President, The Ohio State University

7:10 Dinner served

8 p.m. Program resumes

Keynote address: “Endeavour to Succeed”
Captain Mark Kelly Commander of the Space Shuttle Endeavour’s Final Mission

8:38 p.m. Q&A with John and Annie Glenn
Closing Remarks
E. Gordon Gee

*Parking: Best parking is in the Ohio Union garage, just north of the Ohio Union.
*Multimedia: To download and use broadcast-quality video, soundbites and photos click here: http://go.osu.edu/mediaglenn