Nitza Margarita Cintron
Dr. Nitza Margarita Cintron (born 1950 in San Juan, Puerto Rico) is a scientist who is the Chief of NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) Space Medicine and Health Care Systems Office.
As a child, Cintron traveled throughout Europe because her father was a member of the U.S. Army. When her father retired from the armed forces, they returned to Puerto Rico and settled down in Santurce, a section of San Juan. There she attended elementary and high school, where she excelled in science and mathematics. She dedicated many hours to reading and studying about biology, chemistry, astronomy and space.
Cintron enrolled in the University of Puerto Rico where she earned her Bachelors Degree in Biology. She then went to Texas, where she attended the University of Texas' Medical Branch in Galveston. She graduated with a Medical Doctors Degree and soon after enrolled at Johns Hopkins University where she earned her PhD in biochemistry and molecular biology.
In 1978, Cintron read a recruitment announcement for the first Mission Specialist positions in the Astronaut Corps while at John Hopkins completing her PhD. She answered the Ad and passed to the finals, however she was not selected because of her eyesight. Her qualifications impressed the people at NASA to the extent that she was offered the position of NASA Scientist.
In 1979, Cintron was the originator of the center's (JSC) biochemical laboratory. Cintron also served from (1979–85) as the project scientist for the Space Lab 2 mission which was launched aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1985.
Among the positions held by Cintron in NASA are "Chief of the Biomedical Operations and Research Branch in the Medical Science Division" and "Director for managing the Life Sciences Research Laboratories" in support of medical operations. In 2004 she was named "Chief of NASA's (JSC) Space Medicine and Health Care Sysytems Office", position which she currently holds.
Cintron has received many awards and honors. Among them the "JSC Director's Commendation and Innovation Award", the centers highest award for a civil servant, the "NASA Medal for Exceptional Scientific Achievement", the highest science honor given by the agency. On October 7, 2004, she was inducted into the Hispanic Engineer's National Achievement Awards Conference (HENAAC) Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame, located in Los Angeles, California, was established in 1998 and recognizes the contributions of Hispanics in the fields of science, engineering and technology.
See also
Categories: 1950 births | Puerto Rican scientists