For immediate release: August 11, 2011

Bozeman, Mont.—A Senior Education Advisor from USAID and a NASA Educator Astronaut are the newest members of the Board of Directors for the Project WET Foundation. Both Richard R. "Ricky" Arnold, II—a former science and math teacher currently working at NASA—and Joe Kitts—part of Office of Sustainable Development at USAID's Africa Bureau in the Education Division—will travel to Bozeman next month for Board meetings and to take part in Project WET's global water education conference.

Arnold, a NASA Mission Specialist and Educator Astronaut, has lived, worked and taught all over the world—even under the oceans and in space. A trained aquanaut as well as astronaut, in 2007 Arnold served on a joint NASA-NOAA mission to Aquarius, the world's only undersea laboratory. In 2009, he traveled on the space shuttle Discovery to the International Space Station, completing two spacewalks and spending 12 days in space.
Joe Kitts is the Senior Education Advisor at USAID's Africa Bureau within the Office of Sustainability, Education Division. Kitts' office supports the USAID's bilateral education programs in 20 Sub-Saharan African countries. The Division's over-arching goal is to assist African countries in meeting their goals to improve access to a quality education for all primary-school-aged children.

"We are thrilled to have Joe and Ricky bringing our Board of Directors to its full capacity of seven very diverse members," Project WET President and CEO Dennis Nelson said. "They bring a wealth of amazing experience to us, and we look forward to having their expert counsel going forward."

Project WET's Board of Directors represents the 501(c)(3) organization's commitment to "water for all water users"—a core Project WET principle emphasizing that "water of sufficient quality and quantity is vital for all water users: energy producers, farmers and ranchers, fish and wildlife, manufacturers, recreationists, rural and urban dwellers." Board members come from all water user categories and multiple regions, representing not only U.S. government agencies but also corporations such as the international mining group Rio Tinto, Nestlé Waters North America, United Airlines and Intel Corporation.

The Project WET Board of Directors meets several times per year, including at least one meeting for which Board members are invited to Project WET's headquarters in Bozeman, Montana. This year's Fall Board Meeting coincides with the beginning of the Sustaining the Blue Planet: Global Water Education Conference to be held September 13-16, 2011 in Bozeman. Board members will be honored at a reception, and many will also be active presenters and participants in the four-day event.

About Project WET: Since 1984, the Project WET Foundation, an award-winning U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, has dedicated itself to the mission of reaching children, parents, teachers and community members of the world with water education. Project WET is active in all 50 U.S. states and in more than 50 countries worldwide. Learn more at www.projectwet.org.

Contact: Nicole Rosenleaf Ritter, Communication Specialist, Project WET Foundation
Phone: (406) 585-4115