SLIDESHOW: Education Secretary Tours McAuliffe Space Center, Goes on Mission With Students

Massachusetts Education Secretary Matt Malone toured the McAuliffe Space Center at Framingham State University Friday afternoon and interacted with sixth graders from an Ashland Middle School.

Malone had a chance to get inside the space simulator and toured the center's planetarium with interim Framingham State University Robert Martin and State Representative Tom Sannicandro, a Democrat who represents parts of Framingham and Ashland.

Sannicandro's office said it was a great way for our state’s education administrators to interact with local school children and showcase the great asset we have in Framingham at the McAuliffe Center. 

Framingham State’s Christa Corrigan McAuliffe Center has been supporting teachers and instilling a love of science in students since 1986.

More than 12,000 students visit the center each year to explore the outer reaches of space in the planetarium or take a simulated voyage to mars in the full-size mockups of a space station and Houston’s Mission Control Room. These experiences often spark an interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) education.

The Center went through a renovation in 2012.

The Center is named in memory of Framingham State Alumna Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher in space, who also graduated from Marian High School.

Thanks to Kevin Cummings of Cummings Photography in Framingham for photographing the visit for Framingham Patch.