Who am I?

I am the payload manager for the Fundamental Biology Research Project for the NASA/Mir Science Program. I am responsible for managing approximately 15 contractors and three civil servants. I interact with Life Sciences program management personnel at NASA Headquarters as well as those in NASA/Mir program management at Johnson Space Center. Additionally, I interact with our Russian counterparts at the Institute for Biomedical Problems in Moscow, Russia.

Part of our responsibilities are to make sure that the life sciences research proposed by scientists from around the world is successfully carried out by the crew of Russian cosmonauts and United States astronauts onboard the Mir space station.

My Career Journey

In high school I thought I would pursue veterinary medicine in college. But once I reached college, I decided that I wanted to study engineering instead. Eventually, I narrowed my broad perspective of engineering to a more defined one of biomedical engineering. But there were not many summer jobs in biomedical engineering at that time, so I did a lot of volunteer work to gain experience. Now there are co-op programs and other opportunities for experience that are almost mandatory to become involved in.

I had a "traditional" college experience in which I entered college directly after high school and graduated in four and a half years. I took an extra half year to make sure I was doing what I wanted to.

I graduated from Texas Agricultural and Mechanical (A & M) University in 1979 with a degree in Biomedical Engineering. At that time there were few opportunities for anyone in my area. However, during my college days at Texas A & M, I met a hiring manager from General Electric (GE) working in the spaceflight Human Life Sciences research area and became interested in this career field. I started working for GE in Houston in January 1980 and began working at NASA-Ames Research Center (ARC) in 1985.

I was given an opportunity to work in the Russian program after managing the ARC payload on the Space Life Sciences II mission in 1993, having become involved in long-range advanced planning. Although I had never considered involvement with the Russians, I think that my career is part of what is happening in the world today, where programs and projects are becoming more global in their focus.

Influences

My dad was an engineer at General Dynamics in aerospace design and testing of jet aircraft, such as F-111 and F-16 aircraft. Although I did not talk to him about his work very much as a child, I think his work had a subconcious influence on what I wanted to do. I did well in math and science in junior and senior high school, and developed an interest in life sciences.

Personal Information

I am married (separated) and have an eleven-year-old son, who defines who I am outside of work. My son and I are best friends with each other and I enjoy watching him develop as we do things together. I also like hiking, camping, bicycling and baseball. Living in the Bay Area allows me to do these activities all year, as well as enjoy the different cultures here.

Likes/Dislikes About Career

The best part of my job is international travel and contributing to the effort of putting a U.S. astronaut on the Russian MIR space station. The worst part is the bureaucracy of the program and the difficulties of trying to manage several research projects at the same time. Since one of NASA's life sciences shuttle projects, called "Neurolab," is scheduled to be launched in 1998, more attention must be given to that project. That means that our needs for help on Shuttle/Mir are not always met. Also, because the NASA/Mir program is still evolving, there is no well-defined process for our group and that can be frustrating.

This leads to a major issue. Many projects have been reduced in human resources and funding or canceled because of low money flow. So, I sometimes feel that I do not have management support for my projects because of this. However, all shuttle missions have the same funding problems, and all government programs are subject to the politics of the federal budget process.

Advice

My advice to anyone interested in my career would be to first start by earning a bachelor's degree in electrical or mechanical engineering, and then work towards a master's degree in biomedical engineering There are many different applications and really great things in biotechnology.

I believe that the need to graduate from college in four years is not absolutely necessary. The key is to make sure what you're doing in college is interesting to you. There will be plenty of time to get a job after college. Enjoy the experience while you can.

At this time, NASA is still evolving and opportunities to work in NASA are somewhat scarce. Competition for jobs is much more intense. However, although the opportunities are more limited, they are still there, and considering a job as a contractor for NASA is still a way to go. Contractor work is very important, but I prefer to work within NASA because it allows me to be directly involved in an agency of the U.S. government.