Space is for everyone and this artist is here to prove it! Movies can be instrumental in planting seeds that will eventually lead to purpose. This was the case for emerging artist and author Jesse Forte (Jforte), who became fascinated by Buzz Lightyear’s character from “Toy Story.” With a nudge from a fifth-grade teacher, Forte believed he could reach “Infinity and Beyond!” Decades later, the multi-talented creative finally secured his big start in July 2021. After applying to various analog astronaut missions around the world, Jforte became a part of the Lunares Research team in Poland in 2021. Now, Jforte is preparing for his second analog training and hopes to be amongst the stars within the next 18 to 20 months. “Letting the young kids from around the world — especially little Black girls and boys that look like me — see that it’s possible for a brother with melanin dripping from his veins with dreads and gold chains to go to space. I want them to say ‘If he can do it, I can...
TV host Michael Strahan is going from live on-air to live in space. On Nov. 23, Strahan announced on “Good Morning America” that he will be one of six passengers to board Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space flight that is scheduled for Dec. 9. Strahan shared with his co-hosts Robin Roberts and George Stephanopoulos that he has been in total preparation for the human spaceflight launch by getting fitted for his flight suit, testing out his flight seat and will soon be on his way to Van Horn, TX for more training. “Blue Origin – they approached me and they asked if I wanted to be a crew member and without hesitation, I said ‘yes,'” Strahan said on “Good Morning America. “I wanted to go to space!” Strahan continued: “It’s going to take a while, but I do believe it will bring a lot of technological breakthroughs and also innovations to us here on earth…and I just wanted to be a part of it.” Variety reports that the upcoming launch will be the first time a Blue Origin flight has operated at a...
Black businesses have taken a huge hit due to COVID-19, but some are taking action to support other Black business owners during this time. =SPACE , a Black-owned co-working space for multicultural entrepreneurs, has just launched its new digital programming nationwide to provide resources for those affected by the health crisis. This new digital programming streams weekly on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram in the form of meditation and wellness sessions, skill-building workshops around securing funding, marketing, and content creation, and other interactive services for business owners to take part in. According to a press release, Medina, founder of =SPACE, said: “=SPACE has created a response to COVID-19 that brings access and resources to our community. There has never been more of a need for us to assist small businesses of color in developing new tools, 1 on 1 coaching and guidance through available funding options. As the founder of =SPACE, I know that it takes three times...
Since entrepreneurs of color come from so many different backgrounds and sexual orientations, we need spaces where we all feel comfortable and welcomed. With the development of inclusive coworking spaces — like New York’s Ethel’s Club — on the rise, =SPACE is doing just that plus more by adding another layer of inclusivity to its coworking space. “I decided to create an environment that subliminally and very intentionally affirmed marginalized voices, so I created =SPACE for Black, Brown, immigrant voices, and LGBT enterprises,” Citi Medina, the Founder of =SPACE, said. Tone Woolfe Going into its fourth year of operation, =SPACE — located in Newark, New Jersey — isn’t your average coworking space. It has all the ingredients of a grassroots movement backed with innovative business acuity. =SPACE is powered by Medina’s passion for empowering and equipping this generation of overlooked and underserved entrepreneurs, in addition to positive representation of entrepreneurship amongst...
This week President Trump announced that he’s adding $1.6 billion to NASA’s budget so that America can “return to space in a big way.” While more investment in science and space exploration is a good thing, the way the administration plans to go about doing it is raising some concern. On Monday, the administration proposed taking $1.9 billion in Pell Grant surplus dollars to fund a number of different budget priorities, one of which was a fresh jolt of cash for NASA so that the US can return humans to the moon by 2024. The original deadline was 2028. NASA’s budget for 2019 was already at $21.5 billion and this proposal would add $1.6 billion to their 2020 budget. Originally, the president wanted to cut spending for NASA by $500 million. The extra money will also go towards building the Orion capsule, and developing the Space Launch System, the rocket being produced by Boeing that would be used in the moon mission, which we learned this week will be called Artemis, named after the...
NASA announced that its Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) chose five minority-serving community colleges in an effort to establish new STEM courses. MUREP engages underrepresented populations through different initiatives. These multi-year grants are awarded to assist minority institution faculty and students in research of pertinent missions. Bronx Community College, College of the Desert, Los Angeles Pierce College, Passaic County Community College and Prince George’s Community College will be receiving a total of $1.4 million in order to create new STEM courses. These new additions help prepare students to be future members of NASA’s workforce. The chosen colleges will partner with a NASA center or facility in order to accomplish the goals and objectives outlined by MISTC (MUREP Innovations in Space Technology Curriculum) for the duration of a 15-month period for up to $330,000. Read more about what each college will be focusing on here .