Astronaut Memorial Foundation Taps Paul Secor to Lead Programs and Partnerships

(Kennedy Space Center, August 4, 2025) — The Astronaut Memorial Foundation (AMF) is excited to announce that it has named Paul Secor as Vice President of Programs and Partnerships, effective July 29, 2025. In this newly created role, Secor will lead AMF’s educational programs and cultivate partnerships with industry, academia, and government agencies.

Secor brings a powerful blend of vision, leadership, and experience to the organization. For more than 20 years, he has championed space education and research projects. His past roles include Director of Technology Transfer for Florida’s Technological Research and Development Authority, where he led the NASA Space Alliance Technology Outreach Program (SATOP), connecting hundreds of small businesses with NASA engineering expertise.

He later founded Secor Strategies LLC, which played a pivotal role in designing and managing nationwide NASA education programs such as Lunabotics, the NASA Swarmathon, NASA MICI, NASA MINDS, and several others. All of which were dedicated to boosting undergraduate student engagement in STEM. Secor also brings significant experience in coordinating large scale events. In 2012, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex hired his company to help coordinate the rollover of Space Shuttle Atlantis, a celebration which was attended by more than 5,000 people at Exploration Park.

Most recently, Secor served as part-time Executive Director under contract with the American Society for Gravitational and Space Research (ASGSR).

“I worked with Paul personally during my time at ASGSR and thought he did a fantastic job. He more than doubled our financial reserves, increased conference attendance and sponsors significantly, and developed some very innovative communication tools for our advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill”, said Dr. Elizabeth Blaber, past ASGSR President.

In addition to his program leadership, Secor is a certified grant writer with a proven track record of helping to secure over $7 million in state and federal funding for clients.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Paul,” said Thad Altman, President and CEO of AMF. “His creativity, energy, and deep connections in the space community will help to expand our reach and amplify our impact.”