News Release                                                                         No. 21-60

Rita DeHart, KC4RMS

ARISS-USA Director of Public Engagement

[email protected]

 

Announcement of New Senior Leadership Team

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 28, 2021

 

In May 2020, Amateur Radio on the International Space Station, Inc. (ARISS-USA) created a new 501 (c) (3) non-profit charitable organization to enhance and expand ARISS initiatives in the USA.  To support the variety of new functions and roles of this organization, ARISS-USA has augmented its Senior Leadership team by selecting five new members.

 

Martin Schulman, Associate Director: In this role, Mr. Schulman will work with the Executive Director, delegating routine tasks, enhancing perspective, and serving as a backup to the executive director when necessary.  He will also serve as a member of the ARISS-USA board.  Mr. Schulman has over 30 years of experience in telecommunications, programming, and computer security, and is also an active volunteer with the Sterling Park Amateur Radio Club in Sterling, Virginia.

 

Tom Henderson, Secretary:  In this role, Mr. Henderson will have the primary duty of ensuring that the internal matters of the organization run smoothly and efficiently. He will record and keep the minutes of all meetings of the Board. Mr. Henderson also serves as the custodian of the ARISS-USA Minute Book and additional books and records as the Board may direct.  Mr. Henderson’s profession is IT infrastructure and systems security research.  He is also current president of the Bloomington, Indiana Amateur Radio Club.

 

Jena Dunham, Director of Volunteer Resources:  Ms. Dunham will be responsible for the recruitment, basic training, and retention of volunteers needed to complete ARISS-USA’s mission. She will also maintain the volunteer database, manage subscriptions to the mailing lists, and generate policies regarding volunteer conduct.  Ms. Dunham is an experienced nurse practitioner in the state of Kansas and has served as a volunteer for 4-H and the Stormont Vail hospital system.

 

Rita DeHart, Director of Public Engagement:  Ms. DeHart will be responsible for raising public awareness of the ARISS program. This includes the management of all communication methods with the public (including, but not limited to, website, press releases, articles, and all forms of social media).  She will also be responsible for the management of conference participation.  Ms. DeHart has 46 years in the electric power industry and is an active member of the Tampa Amateur Radio Club.

 

 

Randy Berger, Director of Engineering:  Mr. Berger is responsible for planning and executing the development of hardware and software systems that will enhance the primary goals of ARISS-USA, specifically STEM education and backup communications for crew members on human spaceflight vehicles. Mr. Berger’s scope of engineering involvement will support the efforts of ARISS and includes everything within the engineering purview of ARISS, such as ISS, Lunar Gateway, satellite developments, and future government and commercial space ventures.  International collaboration and coordination on systems and engineering strategies will be paramount in this role along with the understanding of national and international collaboration laws and constraints (such as ITAR) that is critically important in this role.  Mr. Berger is an experienced technology officer and has been involved with amateur radio since the 1970s.

 

The new team members will join veteran leaders Frank Bauer (Executive Director), Carol Jackson (Treasurer), and Kathy Lamont (Director of Education).   The Senior Leadership Team will work closely with long-time ARISS US Delegates Rosalie White (ARRL) and Dave Taylor (AMSAT).

 

The Director of Business Development and Director of Operations positions currently remain vacant.

 

ARISS – Celebrating 20 Years of Continuous Amateur Radio Operations on the ISS

 

 

 

About ARISS:

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the ISS National Lab-Space Station Explorers, and NASA’s Space communications and Navigation program. The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics (STEAM) topics. ARISS does this by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities take part in hands-on learning activities tied to space, space technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org, www.ariss-USA.org

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Media Contact:

Rita DeHart, KC4RMS

Director of Public Engagement

ARISS-USA

 

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