N.O.A.H.

I had an idea dawn on me while studying for finals. It wasn't even inspired by Earth Science. Oddly it was whilst I reviewed Cold War America for my American History class. Maybe my subconscious was really interested in Sputnik and the Space Race.

Anyway, here's what I came up with:
N.O.A.H. which stands for New Earth (or maybe Neo-geo) Outreach for the Advancement of Humanity.

Basically it's a massive "generation" craft that acts as a flying farm, laboratory, smelter, and factory. It has a large crew of flight personnel, scientists, and "givers". They are called givers because they knew when they signed up they were giving their lives to care for those in cryo-stasis and maintain the ship/project while aware of the fact that they will never see the destination. Many of the givers are scientists and doctors that oversee the precious cargo of live samples to be used once landfall is made. The "cargo" in hibernation will be reactivated to see to the routine jobs once they're within 1-2 years of the destination. Once they arrive the ship itself will act as shelter and a base of operations to establish the colony. The living quarters will all be within the ship that is prepped for defense should their be any sentient threats on the planet. Exploration probes and discovery parties will be launched from the ship to better understand the planet before the farm domes (greenhouses and stables) are put in place.

A limited number of children is allowed on the ship and within the colony until it is established enough to harvest its own supplies. All personnel are kept sterile via an antibiotic drug in their foodstuffs. This also keeps them from contracting any life-threatening illness en route. They must lay out a plan and calculate whether a child can be raised and properly supported. They then submit an appeal, which is either approved or denied. If denied, they must wait 12-18 months at which time they can try again. If approved, they are given a fertility drug that cancels the antibiotic. They remain on this treatment and are "quarantined" for no less than 90 days. They are quarantined to be kept safe from disease or injury which could threaten their ability to produce offspring. The quarantine is not a plastic bubble or tiny cell, instead it is a portion of the ship which they must reside in. Failure to remain within this area demonstrates lack of cooperation/compliance with policy. If they are found to be lacking mental fortitude deemed necessary to commit to raising a child, they are given a strong dose of abortive drugs that chemically sterilize them. Any future participation in breeding to produce life is essentially voided.

If they pass quarantine, samples are taken from both parents, tested rigorously to validate fertility, and to predict/prevent any defects. The new humans of the new population must be completely without "setbacks". Another control the ship places on breeding is that part of the appeal process is to determine what purpose or role the child is being bred for. They are not simply to use up air and resources, they must contribute something to the colony. Therefore, they are genetically engineered for a specific role, such as intellect for a heady job like science and medicine, or greater physicality for work and exploration. Yes, much "grunt" work will be done with various droids, bots, and machines but physical strength is still preferred for certain jobs.