Massachusetts School to Be Named After NASA Astronaut Sunita Williams

1.A new elementary school in Massachusetts will be named after Indian-American NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, who formerly held the record for cumulative spacewalking time by a female astronaut.

Earlier this month, the Needham Public Schools committee voted to name a new elementary school being built to replace an existing one in Needham — a town 17 miles southwest of Boston — Sunita L. Williams Elementary School.

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1. A new elementary school in Massachusetts will be named after Indian-American NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, who formerly held the record for cumulative spacewalking time by a female astronaut.

Earlier this month, the Needham Public Schools committee voted to name a new elementary school being built to replace an existing one in Needham — a town 17 miles southwest of Boston — Sunita L. Williams Elementary School.

“The committee felt Sunita represented Needham Public Schools not because she attended Needham Public Schools and coincidentally also attended the school that is being rebuilt. Sunita represents a woman in the STEM field … which is important for young women in the country to see other women involved in,” Heidi Black, chair of the Needham School Committee, told NBC News.

Astronaut Sunita L. Williams
Astronaut Sunita L. Williams was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1998, has spent a total of 322 days in space, and previously served in the Navy. Courtesy of NASA
Williams was born in Ohio, but grew up in Needham and attended public schools in the town. She considers it her hometown.

Williams is one of two Asian Americans in NASA’s astronaut corp, which currently consists of 44 active astronauts, Brandi Dean, public affairs specialist at NASA, told NBC News. She was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1998, has spent a total of 322 days in space, and previously served in the Navy.

Williams said that having an elementary school in her hometown named after her as humbling and overwhelming.

“I hope this will be a new spark and addition to the town. I’m excited for the future of the students there and I hope it opens up their eyes to even greater possibilities than what was obvious from when I was there,” she told NBC News.

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