Overview
- President Trump signed an executive order on Aug. 28 creating a Presidential Commission, chaired by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, to design a United States Space Academy.
- NASA published a Request for Information on Sept. 10 asking governors or their designees to submit one state proposal by Oct. 26 to host and sponsor the academy.
- The RFI lays out an aggressive schedule that seeks a groundbreaking by 2027, temporary instruction for the first 300 students in 2028, and a permanent campus operating by 2031.
- Commission discussions so far have focused on governance, curriculum, admissions, partnerships and whether graduates would incur government service obligations, but those legal and funding matters are not settled.
- The proposal is framed as a national-security and workforce solution and has prompted state lobbying and political questions about cost, duplication with existing programs, and Congress’s role in authorization and funding.