Inspiring the Next Space Pioneers, Innovators, Researchers, and Explorers (Inspire) Women Act

Floor Speech

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I rise today in support of H.R. 4755, the Inspiring the Next Space Pioneers, Innovators, Researchers, and Explorers Women Act.

This bill calls on the NASA Administrator to support initiatives that encourage girls and young women to study STEM fields and pursue careers in aerospace.

Unfortunately, women are still underrepresented in many STEM fields, including aerospace, but NASA is working hard to change that.

They have developed a number of innovative programs that aim to inspire and encourage young girls and women to pursue STEM degrees and STEM careers.

These include the NASA GIRLS program, the Aspire 2 Inspire program, and the Summer Institute in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Research, or SISTER, program.

The NASA GIRLS program is a virtual mentoring program where middle school students are mentored by NASA employees online.

The Aspire 2 Inspire program is another online program where girls and young women can watch films of women who have exciting careers at NASA. This program gives young girls a firsthand look at what a STEM career at NASA could actually entail.

The Summer Institute in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Research, the so-called SISTER program, is an intensive 1-week program where middle school girls can explore careers in science, technology, engineering, and math fields with NASA women researchers.

It is almost impossible to overstate the value of exposing young students to STEM role models who look like them.

I have seen the impact that a single encounter can have on a young person when I helped arrange a direct link between an astronaut and 3,000 students in my district when he was in the International Space Station.

It was electric and exciting and inspired everyone in that room to think about reaching beyond what they had seen and what they knew.

Without these sorts of experiences, students, especially young girls, may think careers in STEM fields are not available to them.

I am particularly supportive of this bill because it has a focus on middle school girls. Research has shown that this is a crucial time to engage girls in considering pursuing careers in science.

I have to say I myself got inspired to pursue more about science when, as a middle schooler, I was at camp and joined my fellow campers staring up at the Moon for the first spacewalk and landing on the Moon. So I know the impact that this can have on a 12- or 13-year-old.

H.R. 4755 instructs the NASA Administrator to support these programs and other programs that encourage women and girls to study science, technology, engineering, and math, as well as to pursue careers in aerospace.

The bill also calls on NASA to submit a plan to Congress on how it can best facilitate and support current and retired astronauts, scientists, engineers, and innovators to engage girls studying STEM at the K-12 grade levels.

Although retired astronauts, scientists, and engineers can help inspire the next generation of NASA scientists, early career women-- astronauts, scientists, engineers and innovators--are really instrumental to the success of this plan.

It is really invaluable for young women to have experiences interacting with role models who are close to their age who are pursuing careers in the STEM fields.

I really want to thank my Committee on Science, Space, and Technology colleagues--the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Comstock) for her leadership on this bill; the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Clark); the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson), the ranking member; and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith), the chairman--for joining together in bringing this bill to the floor today.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to support this bill. Seeing as we have no other speakers on this side, I am prepared to close.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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