New NASA astronaut candidate Lauren Edgar has joined a list of aerospace professionals who started on the path to a career in aviation at the Museum of Flight’s Education programs.
Edgar, who was chosen in September to join the 2025 astronaut candidate class, grew up in a small town about 20 miles from the Seattle museum.
“I think that my experience at the museum turned my childhood passion for space exploration into a realistic career path,” said Edgar, now 40.
“Aviation and space exploration are not fields that we’re exposed to in a typical public school education, but I’m grateful that I could continue to learn outside of the classroom, even if I didn’t realize how much I was learning at the time,” she added.
The Museum’s Education office offers many opportunities for students from kindergarten through 12th grade to explore STEM education in aviation and aerospace.
Edgar says she was first enthralled with the museum during middle school and in high school she volunteered in the Museum Apprentice Program (MAP).
“I had the opportunity to interact with other students from around the Puget Sound who shared my passion,” she said. “Rather than giving up on STEM fields, I was encouraged even further to pursue this as a career.”
“Through the museum, I was also able to meet a number of mentors and inspirational figures — pilots, astronauts, flight controllers, etc. — and learn about the paths they took to achieve their goals,” she continued. “Hearing their stories made me realize that this career path was obtainable.”
Some graduates of the museum’s education programs have benefited from scholarships for pilot training and college education. Edgar was able to offset her post-secondary school expenses as a Stephen and Hazel Eastman Memorial Scholarship recipient. Since 2018 the museum has awarded nearly $2 million in scholarships to 120 students.
Edgar joins a growing list of other participants in the museum’s education programs who have gone on to careers in aviation, including:
- MAP graduate Katrina Morgan is a former USAF captain, Embry-Riddle Athletic Hall of Fame member, and an instructor pilot with the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training Program.
- 2010 Washington Aerospace Scholars (WAS) program graduate Shawna Ryan is now a New Glenn Mission Manager at Blue Origin. She also mentored WAS students in 2012 and 2022.
- 2014 WAS graduate Alfonso Gonzalez is a Guidance, Navigation and Control Engineer at SpaceX working on its Direct to Cell constellation design. He also makes educational videos and hosts the Astrodynamics and Space Engineering Podcast.
- Former MAP student and Aerospace Camp Experience (ACE) employee Abby Jarve is now a first officer flying for Skywest Airlines.
- WAS graduate and former museum intern Alexis Hepburn is a Principal New Product Introduction Supplier Engineer at Raytheon.
- Aeronautical Science Pathway (ASP) graduate Dane Anders is a Senior Production Leader at Boeing.
- WAS graduate Chelsea Olsen is an Electrical Design and Analysis Engineer with the Boeing E-7 program. She is also a trustee at The Museum of Flight.
For more information: MuseumOfFlight.org
Civil Air Patrol is also responsible for a lot of the nations pilots & maintainers. Many of our military pilots, astronauts, heavy iron drivers, and mechanics, got their start as CAP Cadets.
This program and others like it provide a very valuable way to introduce kids to aviation who might not get it any other way. There was an FAA study a few years ago that found that most people who pursue an aviation career were introduced to aviation through programs like this or other means before the age of about ten. If we don’t get them young, we lose a lot of talent!