El Paso, Texas, September 28, 2026 – El Pasoan and former NASA astronaut Danny Olivas is leading a new mission: ‘VOTE FOR FREEDOM’ and he chose El Paso Community College (EPCC) for the launch in the region.
EPCC Student Government Association (SGA), Campus Life & Student Leadership hosted a ‘fireside chat’ with former NASA astronaut Dr. Danny Olivas, a Burges High School alumnus, who represents the group Astronauts For America (AFA) as part of the “VOTE FOR FREEDOM” non-partisan national college tour.
VOTE FOR FREEDOM is a nationwide non-partisan initiative to encourage young Americans to seek common ground and help heal our nation by being active participants in our representative democracy.
“Going to the polls is a small step for each American, but a giant leap for our country,” Dr. Olivas, Astronauts For America steering committee member, said.
Dr. Olivas, along with SGA Vice President Erick Gutierrez-Carlson, held a question and answer session with EPCC students at the Valle Verde AST Flexitorium.
“I think it’s a really good thing to assist students to register and remind them to vote,” Abril Aguilar, a multidisciplinary studies major, said. “It’s great to have it here on campus and have a voice.”
“I was really touched by the message, seeing someone who grew up in El Paso and accomplished so many things, it was a great message,” Jalen Rodriguez, a Nursing major, said. “You can make it big, and how important it is to vote, just an important message.”
“Young voters are the stewards of our shared future,” Olivas added. “By working across generations, we can contribute to a more robust and deliberative democracy where elected officials are held accountable and constitutional rights are respected and upheld for the long term.”
Dr. Olivas, who flew as a mission specialist on two space shuttle flights in his 12-year astronaut career, is part of 100 former astronauts of Astronauts For America. The retired astronauts are visiting college campuses across the country over four months, encouraging young Americans to register, vote, and become lifelong participants in our constitutional democracy. EPCC is one of only two community colleges on the list which includes the University of Southern California, the University of Michigan and San Diego State University.
The astronauts’ goal is to have real conversations about voting, democracy and the individual and collective power students can have.
During his twelve-year career with NASA, Olivas was a Mission Specialist and veteran of two space flights, STS-117 and STS-128. He completed five spacewalks, including his on-orbit repair to the external thermal protection system of the Space Shuttle. He is a recipient of two NASA Space Flight Medals and the NASA Exceptional Service and Exceptional Achievement Medals. Born in Los Angeles but raised in El Paso, Olivas graduated from Burges High School and UTEP in 1989. Olivas and his wife, Marie, launched the Space for Everyone Foundation in 2020 to help immigrant families with their health and well-being. Olivas is the descendent of immigrants from the state of Chihuahuas in Mexico.
Astronauts For America is a nonpartisan, 501(C)(3) nonprofit organization founded by over 100 former NASA astronauts dedicated to defending the U.S. Constitution, restoring public trust in democratic institutions, and promoting evidence-based, data-driven leadership.
