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This Jefferson Award medal was presented to Dr. Sally K. Ride by the American Institute of Public Service in 1984. Founded in 1972 by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Senator Robert Taft Jr., and Sam Beard, the Jefferson Award is the country’s longest standing and most prestigious celebration of public service. Ride was one of four winners that year, chosen specifically for the Samuel S. Beard Award for "Greatest Public Service by An Individual 35 Years or Under."

Sally Ride became the first American woman in space when she flew aboard STS-7 in 1983. Her second and last space mission was STS-41G in 1984. A physicist with a Ph.D., she joined the astronaut corps in 1978 as a part of the first class of astronauts recruited specifically for the Space Shuttle Program. Viewed as a leader in the NASA community, she served on the Rogers Commission after the Challenger disaster in 1986 as well as the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) in 2003. She also led the task force that produced a visionary strategic planning report in 1987 titled, “NASA Leadership and America’s Future in Space,” but known popularly as the Ride Report.

After she retired from NASA in 1987, Dr. Ride taught first at Stanford and later at the University of California, San Diego. Until her death in 2012, she was president and CEO of Sally Ride Science, a company that promoted science education.

Dr. Ride’s partner, Dr. Tam O’Shaughnessy, donated the medal to the Museum in 2013.

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin United States of America Type AWARDS-Medals & Ribbons Manufacturer Franklin Mint
 Owner Sally K. Ride
 Dimensions Overall: 6.4 × 0.6cm (2 1/2 × 1/4 in.)
 Materials Silver-plated Bronze Medal
 Inventory Number A20140203000 Credit Line Gift of Tam O'Shaughnessy Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Open Access (CCO)
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