Members of the Governing Board:
Governor Abbott Launches Texas Space Commission
Board Officers
Gwen Griffin
Chair
Kemah, TX
Gwen Griffin of Houston is the chief executive officer of the Griffin Communications Group. She is the executive director of Club for the Future, 2024 chair of the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership, and chair of the Dean's Advisory Council for the College of Sciences at the University of Central Florida. Additionally, she is a member of the Space Center Houston Board of Directors, Conrad Foundation Advisory Board, and trustee of the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. Griffin received a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of Central Florida.
Kathy Lueders
Vice Chair
Brownsville, TX
Kathy Lueders of Brownsville is the general manager of Starbase at SpaceX. She worked at NASA for over three decades, serving in various roles such as associate administrator for the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, commercial crew program manager, and international space station program transportation integration manager. She is a member of the National Academy of Engineers and Space & Satellite Hall of Fame. Lueders received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from the University of New Mexico and a Master of Science in Industrial Engineering from New Mexico State University.
Kirk Shireman
Secretary
Pearland, TX
Kirk Shireman of Pearland is the vice president of Lunar Exploration Campaigns at Lockheed Martin. He is on the executive committee and board of directors for the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership, board of directors for Space Center Houston, board of advisors for the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service, and board of advisors for the Texas A&M Aerospace Engineering Advisory Board. He was previously on the board of directors for the Lutheran Educational Foundation of Houston. Shireman earned a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from Texas A&M University.
Board Directors
Dr. Nancy Currie-Gregg
College Station, TX
Nancy Currie-Gregg, Ph.D., of College Station is the director of the Texas A&M Space Institute. She is a former NASA astronaut and accumulated over 1,000 hours in space over the course of four missions. She also served NASA in various roles including as deputy director of engineering, chief engineer, and principal engineer. Dr. Currie-Gregg earned her Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Houston.
Sassie Duggleby
Friendswood, TX
Sarah “Sassie” Duggleby is the CEO and co-founder of Venus Aerospace. Prior to launching Venus, she was Launch Systems Engineering and Mission Management Consultant at Virgin Orbit, where she developed and tested launch software and telemetry systems, managed launch systems engineering requirements, and helped with Mission Management and Business Development. She has spent her career growing multiple high-tech startup businesses including fiber-optic test (Luna Technologies), biotech (Ecolyse / Phage Biocontrol), and hazardous trailer manufacturing (Exosent). Duggleby received a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from Texas A&M University and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Virginia Polytechnic University.
Evan Loomis
Austin, TX
Evan Loomis of Austin is the co-founder of ICON, a general partner in Overmatch Ventures, a founding partner of Saturn Five, a venture partner for Audere Capital LLC, and an adjunct professor at Texas A&M University. He is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations and board member of EMCJET. He is also a volunteer for Praxis Labs and a member of the Christ Church of Austin. Loomis earned a finance degree from Texas A&M University.
Brad Morrison
Boerne, TX
Brad Morrison of Boerne is the founder and CEO of Atlantis Industries. He is a member of the Boerne Kendall County Angels Network and the Texas National Security Innovation Council. He is also a former chair of the Cybersecurity Committee for the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, former member of the Business Executives for National Security, former member of the Texas Business Leadership Council, and former chairman of the Texas Lyceum. Additionally, he served as business accelerator chair for the Entrepreneurs Organization and as honorary commander for the United States Air Force 67th Cyberspace Wing. Morrison earned a Bachelor of Science in Management from the United States Air Force Academy and a Master of Science in Telecommunications from Southern Methodist University.
John Shannon
Houston, TX
John Shannon of Houston is the vice president of Exploration Systems at the Boeing Company, where he is responsible for all aspects of human spaceflight. Previously, he worked for NASA at the Johnson Space Center for 26 years, serving as a flight director and space shuttle program manager. He is a board member for the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration and the American Astronautical Society and member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and Manned Spaceflight Operations Association. Additionally, he is an academician for the International Astronautical Federation. Shannon received a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from Texas A&M University and completed the program for management development at Harvard Business School.
Dr. Heather Wilson
El Paso, TX
Heather Wilson, Ph.D., of El Paso is the president of The University of Texas at El Paso. She previously served as the secretary of the United States Air Force and as a U.S. Congresswoman for a decade. She is a member of the National Science Board and is chair of the Alliance of Hispanic Serving Research Universities. Dr. Wilson earned an undergraduate degree from the United States Air Force Academy and completed master’s and doctoral degrees as a Rhodes scholar from Oxford University.
Texas Aerospace Research and Space Economy Consortium (TARSEC) Executive Committee
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Hometown