Christa McAuliffe Vice President George H. W. Bush announced that she had been selected for the position. Another teacher, Barbara Morgan, served as her backup. According to Mark Travis of the "Concord Monitor", it was her manner that set her apart from the other candidates. NASA official Alan Ladwig said "she had an infectious enthusiasm", and NASA psychiatrist Terrence McGuire told "New Woman" magazine that "she was the most broad-based, best-balanced person of the 10." Later that year, she and Morgan each took a year-long leave of absence from teaching in order to train for a space shuttle mission in early 1986.
Christa Collins a hospital, Denise Larson wanted to go inside to see if they could make an appointment for her daughter. While her mother was crossing the street, she was accidentally run over by a male hit and run driver. Denise died from her injuries. The driver was never found. Christa was eventually dropped from Disney Records and her second album was shelved. Her father is now remarried to his third wife. After losing her mother, who was also her manager, Larson effectively left show business in 1992. After Denise died Christa dropped out of high school. Christa later got married to