UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Donald Henninger of Houston, Texas, is one of five recipients of 2001 Outstanding Alumni Awards from Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.

The award highlights distinguished graduates of the college and creates opportunities for interaction between alumni, students and faculty.

Henninger is chief scientist and project manager for the Advanced Life Support Program at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, where he has worked since 1977. He supervises 50 staff members and administers a budget of more than $14 million.

"Dr. Henninger's career exemplifies the interdisciplinary approach of today's scientific endeavors," says John Sager, bioregenerative life support research manager at NASA. "His education at Penn State in engineering technology and agronomy has provided the basic technical and management skill upon which he has built his career. He's also exhibited the ability to enhance his understanding of science and organizing principles and apply them to a multidisciplinary team."

Henninger has authored or coauthored 12 publications since 1995, including "Life Inside the Can: the Lunar/Mars Life Support Test Project."

He received the 1995 NASA Exceptional Service Medal and a patent in 1995 for his invention of "active synthetic soil." He is a research advisor for the National Research Council and serves on the editorial board of the International Journal of Life Support and Biospherics. He also is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Society for Gravitational and Space Biology, the American Society of Agronomy and the Soil Science Society of America.

Born in Allentown, Pa., and raised on a potato farm in Germansville, Pa., Henninger received a bachelor's degree in agricultural mechanization (1970), a master's degree in agronomy (1972) and a doctorate in agronomy (1976), all from Penn State.

In conjunction with receiving the award, Henninger will travel to Penn State's University Park campus this fall to visit with students, faculty, staff and administrators.

###

EDITORS: For more information, contact Jillian Stevenson at 814-863-2831.

Contacts:

Gary Abdullah gxa2@psu.edu 814-863-2708 814-865-1068 fax