Washington, May 17 - Congressman Reyes (D-TX) announced today that college sophomores from El Paso Community College (EPCC) Valle Verde Campus will be sending a cactus space farm experiment to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a SpaceX Dragon cargo capsule that will launch on Saturday, May 19th.

“This opportunity provides a unique hands-on experience for our next generation of scientists and engineers,” said Congressman Reyes. “I congratulate the students from EPCC on attaining this historic accomplishment.”

The first private spacecraft ever to launch toward the International Space Station will blast off from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. SpaceX Dragon will be carrying fifteen student science experiments that were selected in a competition through NASA’s Student Spaceflight Experiments Program. A total of 779 student teams competed in this competition and nearly 5,000 students submitted 2,299 experiment ideas.

As co-Founder and co-Chairman of the House Diversity and Innovation Caucus, Congressman Reyes works to advance legislation and policies and highlight activities to encourage under-represented minorities to pursue careers in STEM fields. As Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence from 2007 – 2010, Congressman Reyes also emphasized the need to improve diversity among the U.S. intelligence agencies.

As a champion of STEM education, Congressman Reyes partners with El Paso Astronaut Danny Olivas to encourage students to pursue careers in STEM fields. Recently, Congressman Reyes joined Mr. Olivas at Burges High School where he donated one of his NASA flight suits to the students, faculty and staff.