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Dean Acosta Leaving NASA

By Keith Cowing
NASA Watch
December 11, 2006

NASA Internal Memo: Acosta Departure Announcement

“Today, I am announcing my departure from NASA as the press secretary and deputy assistant administrator for Public Affairs, effective Jan. 2nd. I have accepted a position as a managing director at Qorvis Communications, a Washington, DC public affairs firm. David Mould will assume the press secretary duties upon my departure.”

NASA Chief Spokesperson’s Next Mission is to Join Qorvis

“Acosta served as chief spokesperson, press secretary and senior adviser to the NASA administrator and deputy administrator. His experience includes coordinating NASA’s response to the shuttle Columbia accident in 2003.”

Official Bio

“Dean Acosta is an Emmy Award winning journalist who became NASA’s deputy assistant administrator for the Office of Public Affairs in April 2003.”

Editor’s note: How is it that Dean was responsible for “coordinating NASA’s response to the shuttle Columbia accident in 2003” when he did not even join the agency until 3 months after the accident?

As a matter of fact, like many others, I spent a lot of time in close proximity to NASA PAO during those months. As I recall the “work” at HQ was done by Glenn Mahone, Paula Cleggett, Doc Mirelson, Allard Beutel, Bob Jacobs, and many others across the agency. Whatever Columbia-related activity Dean may have eventually “coordinated” was done well after he arrived at NASA – with 99% of the actual “work” done by others.

NASA Watch founder, Explorers Club Fellow, ex-NASA, Away Teams, Journalist, Space & Astrobiology, Lapsed climber.