MELBOURNE, Fla., Sept. 10, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Foundation will launch nearly 60 Florida teachers into weightlessness later this month as part of the Northrop Grumman Foundation Weightless Flights of Discovery program. The goal of the program is to inspire the next generation of scientists, mathematicians and engineers -- critical areas where the U.S. has fallen behind globally.
A photo accompanying this release is available at http://media.primezone.com/noc/
Teachers from all over the state applied for the program just as the school year ended in May, and 60 were chosen from nearly 200 applications. Florida school districts represented are: Bay, Brevard, Broward, Calhoun, Citrus, Collier, Duval, Flagler, Hillsborough, Marion, Martin, Orange, Palm Beach, Pasco, Polk, Seminole, St. Johns, Volusia and Washington. Those selected attended a workshop in mid-August at Northrop Grumman's Melbourne facility.
The Space Coast flight will take off from the Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility on September 30.
Northrop Grumman Foundation Weightless Flights of Discovery is an innovative hands-on training program that gives teachers an "out-of-this-world" experience as a way to help them inspire their students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math. Area teachers prepared for the zero-gravity flights this summer by attending workshops and designing experiments to execute while in zero-gravity in order to test Newton's Laws of Motion. Following the flights, the teachers will bring their in-flight experiences, enthusiasm and videotaped experiments into the classroom, where they will be integrated into lesson plans.
Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.
For more information on Northrop Grumman Foundation's Weightless Flights of Discovery, visit: http://www.northropgrumman.com/community/weightless.html.
For information on following local teachers, photos or video, contact Jim Stratford, Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems in Melbourne at 321-726-7526 or at jim.stratford@ngc.com.
