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The Voice of Pelham, March 22, 2017
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
Crossley grad sets sights on space flight—among 32 finalists Astronaut candidate credits education, and one educator in particular, for helping him get where he is today BY ZACH JUNKIN
Special to the VOICE
T
HE STARS ARE THE LIMIT for former Fonthill resident and E.L. Crossley graduate Erik Kroeker, who was recently named to the Canadian Space Agency’s (CSA) list of 32 final astronaut candidates. For the 32-year-old Kroeker, born in Chatham but who grew up in Fonthill, this news brings him one step closer to achieving his lifelong goal of going into space. “It’s something that I’ve always had on the radar,” he said. “I won’t say that it was a singular focus, but certainly for the last 15 to 20 years it’s been something that I’ve aspired to.” Kroeker credits his family, and one member in particular, for planting that seed early in his life. “When I was young, my grandmother was a big fan of Roberta Bondar,” he said, referring to Canada’s first female astronaut. “When you’re young you tend to look at your parents’ and grandparents’ role models as individuals you kind of want to aspire to be. They become the early prototypes. Obviously your parents and grandparents are also early prototypes, but when you see who they really respect and admire that’s a cue to you as well.” As he progressed through his classes at A.K. Wigg, and later E.L. Crossley, he found himself drawn
to the sciences, and those early dreams developed into something more tangible. “It was always something present in my mind,” he said. “As I started getting into school and doing science, and realizing just how much I loved space sciences, it began to become a clear career objective.” After graduating high school, Kroeker was accepted into Princeton University, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in mechanical and aerospace engineering. From there, he moved on to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he earned his Master’s and Ph.D in aerospace engineering. He is quick to praise the passion and support of educators from his youth in helping him get to where he is today. “My teachers were a great inspiration all the way through my education,” said Kroeker. “When you go through high school, I don’t think you ever get a great appreciation for how much your teachers do, until you go to other places and see the comparison,” he added. “Then you start to realize how absolutely amazing and mind-blowing every single teacher at that high school really was, how dedicated they were, how enthusiastic they were, and how much they actually cared about providing the best possible education.” In his biography on the CSA website, Kroeker mentions one
Candidates undergoing a shuttle run test during the first phase of aptitude testing. Crossley graduate Erik Kroeker is wearing #21. SUPPLIED PHOTO high school math teacher in particular whose engaging style stuck with him through the years. That teacher, Robert Hughes, told the Voice that it was always encouraging to find out that you’ve made a lasting impression on a student. “A lot of times when you’re a teacher you wonder if you really have an effect on the kids, so this just makes you realize that a lot of your efforts are worth it,” he said. As for Kroeker’s part, his former teacher remembers him as a student that would always go the
extra mile. “Basically, you would tell Erik to do something, and then he would go do that, and then he would do extra,” said Hughes. That same drive must have also impressed decision makers at the CSA, who last month selected Kroeker and 71 others out of thousands of applicants and invited them to the next stage of candidate assessment, where they underwent a number of physical and mental tests. Though the CSA did not tell the
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candidates exactly what they were looking for, Kroeker was willing to hazard a general guess based on the exercises. “The first assessment centre seemed to be focused on our core competencies as individuals,” he said. “A lot of it was about how you work in fairly nominal situations: Are you a good team member? Are you the type who can lead? Are you the type who can follow? How do you deal with inSee ASTRONAUT Page 12
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