TROY – A former astronaut will highlight the 30th Anniversary celebrations of Troy University’s Sigma Chi chapter January 19-20.

Gregory Harbaugh, a veteran of four space flights and president and chief executive officer of the national Sigma Chi Foundation, will deliver the keynote address at the Eta Phi Chapter’s anniversary banquet on Jan. 20 at Troy University.

Chapter President Will Parker, a student from Geneva, said the weekend event begin Jan. 19 with an alumni reception. On Saturday, a chapter meeting will begin the day’s activities, followed by a “White Rose Ceremony” memorializing the lives of Eta Phi brothers who have died. During the anniversary banquet, the chapter will present its Eta Phi Distinguished Service Award to several chapter alumni.

“This will be a special weekend for Sigma Chi and for the Eta Phi Chapter,” he said.

Harbaugh came to NASA’s Johnson Space Center after graduating from Purdue University in 1978. He held engineering and technical management positions in Space Shuttle flight operations, and support Space Shuttle flight operations from Mission Control for most of the flights from STS-1 through STS 51-L. He became an astronaut in August 1988, logging a total of 818 hours in space, including 18 hours, 29 minutes of extravehicular activity. From 1997 until 2001, he was responsible for all aspects of NASA’s spacewalk industry.

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