NASA News
National Aeronautics and
Space Administration
John C. Stennis Space Center
(228) 688-3341 Aug. 21, 2004
Stennis Space Center, MS 39529-6000
STS-04-079
NASA Public Affairs Office FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (228) 688-3341
JACKSON NATIVE A SUCCESS STORY WITH NASA HANCOCK COUNTY, Miss. – Pamela Guice Covington remembers her first contact with NASA. She was a senior at the University of Southern Mississippi, studying business education. The opportunity to co-op at NASA Stennis Space Center (SSC) fell in her lap through a phone call from NASA to then-chairwoman of USM’s Business Education Department, Dr. Donna Connerly.
“I didn’t even know NASA existed here in Mississippi,” Covington said. “It certainly was not on my radar. I just happened to be in the classroom when she walked in and said NASA needed someone to fill a co-op slot at SSC. The first reaction from the class was: ‘Are you crazy? We’re about to graduate!’”
Covington saw an open door and jumped through it. She had to delay college graduation a year and a half so she could meet the requirements of rotating semesters of work and school. She was the first “floating NASA co-op” at SSC, switching departments at every rotation to support different work functions and learn processes and policies. Covington called the experience invaluable for honing her adaptability.
Since that summer in 1984, Covington has spent her career with NASA. Most recently, she spent seven years at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. There, she served as Director of the Equal Opportunity (EO) and Diversity Management Office. She managed a comprehensive EO program in the areas of affirmative employment, discrimination complaints, complaint counseling, special emphasis program, EO and diversity training, EO advisory committees, student intern programs and community outreach. She also served as Special Assistant to the Associate Administrator for the Office of Equal Opportunity Programs. In that assignment, she was involved in agency-level policy matters across divisions and with corporate-level regulatory agencies such as White House task forces, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Office of Personnel Management.
But her heart has always been at home in Mississippi. She returned last March to assume the role of NASA’s External Affairs Officer at SSC, where she manages NASA’s outreach efforts through SSC’s Education and Public Affairs offices. Covington now lives in Picayune with her husband, Larry; son, Derrien, 12; and daughter, Colby, 8.
“It’s wonderful to be back home,” Covington said. “While I enjoyed my experiences in Washington, D.C., and at NASA headquarters, the goal was to be southward bound when the time came. I love the South. I appreciate the greenery, the back porch swings, the sense of community and the embracing hospitality. It’s what I missed most and what I really appreciate about my Southern roots.”
Today, Covington planted some symbolic roots in her home state. At a celebration of NASA Day at the Russell C. Davis Planetarium, Covington and City of Jackson Assistant Chief Administrator Linda Taylor planted a “Moon Tree.” The tree is a sycamore descended from seeds carried to the Moon and back in 1971 by Apollo 14 Astronaut Stuart Roosa, a longtime Mississippi Coast resident. Roosa carried the seeds in his personal kit – an experiment inspired by his many years with the U.S. Forest Service. The Moon Tree was a gift from NASA SSC to the city.
“It’s very meaningful to me to be part of this activity,” Covington said. “I really am a product of this community. From the public schools to the neighborhood ladies who made sure I got off the school bus safely, to the homemade pound cakes in my suitcase when I went off to college, I have a strong sense of community with Jackson. NASA has an exciting mission of space exploration and I appreciate the opportunity to be a part of this tree planting that will be shared with generations to come. This is one venue to put NASA on the radar.”
-END-
News releases provided by NASA’s Stennis Space Center are available at https://www.nasa.gov/centers/ssc/news/newsreleases/2004. For more information, call the NASA Public Affairs Office at Stennis at 1-800-237-1821 in Mississippi and Louisiana only, or (228) 688-3341.
2004 News Releases