All his life, John Foster has dreamed of exploring new worlds.

Growing up in Natchez, Mississippi, John received his introduction to the sciences from his mother, a teacher. "She had me collecting fossil rocks and looking into microscopes," he says. "But I can't remember a time when I wasn't fascinated by the stars and the idea of space travel."

John was captivated by science fiction and stories of the U.S. space program. At school, he excelled in science. He studied hard, taking as role models science teachers as well as older students at the top of their class. "Seeing these students win scholarships really inspired me," John says. "They were raising the bar, and I wanted to join them."

After high school, John considered applying to the Air Force Academy, but family tradition steered him toward Jackson State University, where he earned his bachelor's degree in physics. For graduate school, he chose the University of Michigan's applied physics Ph.D. program, and sought fellowship support to see him through. At a conference of the National Society of Black Physics Students, he learned about the NPSC fellowship program and applied.

John was offered three different fellowships, but chose NPSC's without hesitation. "It lasted longer, and I liked the idea that I had a say in choosing the lab where I could do research." The NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, funded his fellowship, and he spent a summer in its lab studying a particular research problem that became the foundation for his doctoral thesis. When John returned to school in the fall, the custom-built lab equipment he used at NASA Glenn came with him, so his research could continue uninterrupted.

Today, Dr. John Foster is a research scientist at NASA Glenn, where for the past four years he has been working on advanced space propulsion rocket systems that could one day take us to the outer reaches of our solar system and ultimately to the stars.

"I'm thankful for my NPSC fellowship," John says, "and I'm thankful to NASA for funding my graduate education. For them, it was an investment with a huge payoff. To me, it's been a blessing."

© Copyright 2004, National Physical Science Consortium.