• Educator and eight students selected for Mission Team #18 and #19 represent country’s future STEM workforce

Changi, Singapore. 23 February 2024. Eight Singaporean high school students and an educator were named yesterday as the Astronaut Al Worden Endeavour Scholarship’s “Mission Team #18” and “Mission Team #19,” the southeast Asian nation’s third and fourth recipients of an all-expenses paid week-long, hands-on astronaut training experience this July at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center’s Space Camp in Huntsville, AL.

The announcement ceremony on the third day of the 2024 Singapore Airshow was hosted by Tom Kallman, president and CEO of Kallman Worldwide, organizer of the U.S. presence at the show and founder of the Endeavour Scholarship Foundation. Participants included U.S. Ambassador to Singapore, the Honorable Jonathan Kaplan; Brig. Gen. Anthony J. Mastalir, commander, U.S. Space Forces Indo-Pacific; Leck Chet Lam, managing director of airshow organizer, Experia Events; Tan Tech Meng Daniel, senior director, Exhibitions, Science Centre Singapore; and Edison Tong, a member of Mission Team #6, Singapore’s second Endeavour crew.

“At U.S. Embassy Singapore, we take the promise of space and the importance of our partnership with Singapore as invaluable. Together, Singapore and United States businesses are at the cutting edge of space innovation across the full spectrum of emerging technologies – like aerospace, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, satellite communications, and so many more. Innovation remains the key to solving our global challenges and American technology innovation is the leading contributor to the world at large,” said U.S. Ambassador to Singapore, Jonathan Kaplan.

The Endeavour Scholarship honors its namesake Worden, Command Module Pilot of the Apollo 15 spacecraft “Endeavour,” whose lifelong commitment to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education included serving as Kallman’s STEM ambassador at trade events around the world from 2015 until his passing in 2020.

The four student members of Endeavour Mission Team #18 and #19 were selected by a jury following a review of submissions from eight competing schools. The winning recipients for Mission Team #18 from the Singapore School of Science and Technology are Kam Yau Shing, Natalie Chen Hui Regina Ruzsicska, Emily Chang Ren Minh, and Qeshm Singh Saandhu, and the Mission Team #19 recipients from Pei Hwa Secondary School are Taku Matsumura, Christopher Uday Daniel, Gerard Goh, and Ernest Tay. The educator named to the crew is Mr. Tan Hoe Teck. They join the roster of 68 students and 17 educators from nine countries who have previously added “Endeavour Scholarship Recipient” to their resumes.

Both Mission Team’s crew members were presented their flight jackets by program partner Heidi Grant, Global Growth and Engagement of Boeing Defense, Space, & Security.

“The enthusiasm and support for Endeavour in Singapore is deeply gratifying and exemplifies the nation-to-nation spirit of partnership that fuels our program,” said Kallman. “Every country we work in — and we’ve worked in at least 50 of them since our company was founded in 1963 — is facing the same challenges to prepare its young people for the future. Many also see that future in space. As an extension of our work advancing global trade in exhibition halls around the world, and with the support of partners in government, industry, the military, and academia, the Endeavour Scholarship connects with worldwide interest in space to promote STEM careers on Earth.”

In presenting the awards at the airshow, officials noted, Endeavour recognizes and builds on Singapore’s history of discovery and leadership in STEM education and innovation. “Singapore Airshow is proud to launch the crew of Mission Teams #18 and #19 as representatives of our country’s future workforce,” said Lam. “They are going to Space Camp, and we will all benefit from what they learn and experience there.”

Reflecting on his selection as one of Singapore’s first Endeavour recipients, Tong said one of the most important lessons he learned at Space Camp was to collaborate with people from other countries and cultures. “There is no limit to what we can accomplish by working together,” he said.