Challenger Series
The Challenger Disaster and its Historical Context
wendesday, february 4, 2026
5:00-6:00pm
ALUMNI ROOM at framingham state university
in-person and via Zoom
SPEAKERS
Jennifer Levasseur
Space History Curator, National Air and Space Museum
Dr. Jennifer Levasseur is a Curator in the Space History Department at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum. Dr. Levasseur received her BA in history from the University of Michigan in 1999, an MA in American Studies from George Washington University in 2002, and a PhD in history at George Mason University in 2014. Her book, Through Astronaut Eyes: Photography from Early Human Spaceflight (Purdue University Press, July 2020), looks at the cultural significance of astronaut photography. She serves as the responsible curator for the National Air and Space Museum's astronaut cameras, chronographs, the Space Shuttle, and International Space Station programs.
Dr. Jon Huibregtse
Professor Emeritus, History, Framingham State University
Dr. Jon Huibregtse retired from Framingham State in 2025 after 27 years. He earned his BA and MA from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and his doctorate from the University of Akron. During his time at FSU, he taught courses in Modern American and Chinese history. He served as Department Chair, 2005 to 2013, and Director of the Center For Learning, Teaching, Scholarship and Service, 2018-2021. He served on numerous University committees during his tenure at FSU and as a Faculty Fellow in DGCE. He was a founding member of the FSU Chapter of Phi Kappa Phi, an interdisciplinary Honor Society. He was awarded the Distinguished Faculty Award for Service in 2021. In 2010 his monograph American Railroad Labor and the Genesis of the New Deal was published by the University Press, Florida. He also edited the New England Journal of History.