Hero Sally Ride

A hero of substantial importance is Sally Kristen Ride, America's first female astronaut to reach outer space.

Always a high achiever, Ride was a tennis star at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania, then went on for a master's and Ph.D. in physics at Stanford University. She entered the NASA program in 1978 and became a member of the Space Shuttle Challenger crew in 1983. As such, she became a major role model for American girls.

Ride began teaching physics as a faculty member at the University of California, San Diego, in 1989, and since 2001 she has been CEO of her own company, Sally Ride Science, which focuses on science education for girls.