December 2025 Newsletter

December 19, 2025

Season’s Greetings from ASTRO America! 🎁

In this month’s issue:

• ASTRO Forges Landmark On-Island Engineering Partnerships with Mines and UOG
• ASTRO in the News
• ASTRO Honors a Legacy of Service
• ASTRO in Action

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New Partnerships Bring First-Ever Mainland U.S. University Campus to Guam 🇬🇺

This month, ASTRO America announced its landmark partnerships with the University of Guam (UOG) and Colorado School of Mines (Mines) to bring a four-year mechanical engineering degree to Guam for the first time in the island’s history.

Part of the Guam Additive Materials & Manufacturing Accelerator (GAMMA), the program will take place entirely in Guam, with students doing coursework for the first two years with UOG faculty and the second two years finishing with Mines faculty on the UOG campus. Students will receive a degree from Mines, under the instruction of some of the nation’s top additive manufacturing and advanced production scholars.

The partnerships support a critical workforce need for both Guam’s growing economy and the U.S. Navy’s maritime industrial base. With classes expected to begin in 2026, ASTRO’s initiative marks a major step forward in local innovation, education, and strategic manufacturing capacity.

Read ASTRO’s full press release here.
Read Mines’ press release here.

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ASTRO in the News 📰

Our partnerships with Colorado School of Mines and the University of Guam continue to generate excitement as we look ahead to welcoming the inaugural cohort in 2026. This historic collaboration is more than an academic milestone, it’s a major step forward for Guam’s role in advanced manufacturing and workforce development across the Indo-Pacific.

Here’s a look at how the news is making waves across the media landscape:

• 3D Printing Industry
• 3DPrint.com
• Voxel Matters
• Pacific Island Times
• TCT Magazine
• The Guam Daily Post

This month, GAMMA Director and General Manager Alex Benham joined the “Innovate Guam Podcast” with Rob “The Innovation Coach” Jackson to unpack what GAMMA is and why it represents a pivotal shift for the island.

In the conversation, Alex explored what it means for Guam to not only host ships, aircraft, and military bases, but to also serve as a hub for cutting-edge manufacturing capability at the point of need. He also discussed how additive manufacturing can support Guam’s civilian infrastructure, including practical applications for power and water utilities facing corrosion, aging systems, and long replacement timelines.

Together, the discussion highlighted how GAMMA strengthens both national defense readiness and local resilience. 🎙️

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ASTRO Honors a Legacy of Service 🇺🇸

This week, ASTRO President Neal Orringer and Executive Director Jason Gorey had the honor of presenting John Christensen with an ASTRO Award for Excellence in recognition of his decades-long career in public service. The award was presented outside the U.S. Department of the Treasury, marking John’s retirement.

John’s extraordinary career includes service as a U.S. Navy officer, former Chief of R&D for the Defense Logistics Agency, and longtime advisor to the Defense Manufacturing program at the Pentagon. His leadership has helped shape key programs supporting the U.S. industrial base and national security, including his work as a senior vice president at ASTRO America.

From all of us at ASTRO, thank you, John, for your steadfast commitment to American competitiveness and security.

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ASTRO in Action 🎤

It’s been an extraordinary year for ASTRO, and we’re putting the finishing touches on our 2025 Annual Report to showcase the full scope of our progress. From historic milestones in Guam to major national partnerships and technical breakthroughs, this year has been one for the books.

Check out a sneak peek of the cover, and stay tuned for the full release next month. You won’t want to miss it.

ASTRO wishes you and yours a happy, healthy holiday and a bright start to 2026! 🎄🕎🍾