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Press Release

Scholastic news writers get firsthand glimpse at the future of commercial space travel.

Posted on Feb 16, 2001

WHAT: Keynote address and News Conference Southern Interscholastic Press Association Annual Convention Columbia, South Carolina

WHO: Gene Meyers President Space Island Group

WHEN/ WHERE:

March 2, 2001, 7:00 pm Keynote address

Ballroom, Adam's Mark Hotel

March 3, 2001,  2:15 pm  News Conference

Salon 1, Adam's Mark Hotel


SCHOLASTIC NEWSWRITERS GET FIRSTHAND GLIMPSE AT THE FUTURE OF COMMERCIAL SPACE TRAVEL

BACKGROUND

In 1968, Stanley Kubrick and Sir Arthur C. Clarke changed history with the release of "2001: A Space Odyssey," a film that created a generation of earth dwellers dreaming of living and working in space. In the years since, Hollywood has helped to foster a global vision that pictured the average person traveling in space in our lifetime.

Space Island Group has taken on the challenge of making that vision a reality by developing a plan to design, build and operate commercial space transportation systems and destinations dedicated to commerce, research, satellite repair, manufacturing, tourism and many other uses in space.

Called by the Rochester Institute of Technology the "the most rational case for development of commercial space stations," the Space Island Project is a plan to get educators, businesses and political leaders behind SIG's technological expertise and workable business plan to build the world's first commercial space station by 2010 or sooner. Said Meyers, "I look forward to the opportunity to show these young journalists ways they can help bring education, business and technology together to create commercial space stations by the end of this decade, making parts of '2001: A Space Odyssey' a reality. The Space Odyssey vision is no longer a faraway fantasy, it is a present-day possibility. We have the very real opportunity to bring about the next generation of exploration and settlement of the new frontier of space," he said.

SOUTHERN INTERSCHOLASTIC PRESS ASSOCIATION

BACKGROUND

The Southern Interscholastic Press Association is a not-for-profit scholastic organization whose membership comprises public and private middle, junior and senior high school publication staffs. Its purpose is to promote and uphold a high degree of professionalism in scholastic journalism and mass communications in the Southeast.

Founded at Washington and Lee University in 1926, SIPA moved to the University of South Carolina's College of Journalism and Mass Communications in 1972, where it is still headquartered today.

Annual Convention

SIPA sponsors an Annual Convention, which offers more than 100 educational sessions throughout the year to students and advisers. Sessions are designed to help all staffers, from the beginning to the advanced, and are taught by nationally recognized advisers and journalism professionals.

The 2001 SIPA convention will be held March 2-4 at the Adam's Mark Hotel in Columbia, S.C.