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Laurie Leshin might be returning to NASA because the director of JPL and vp of Caltech. | Supply: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Laurie Leshin, the president of Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), will serve as NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s first feminine director and because the vp of Caltech.
Since 2014, Leshin served on the first lady president of WPI. In her over seven years within the place, Leshin labored to broaden analysis, handle gender disparity in STEM, and additional WPI’s World Tasks Program. Earlier than that, she was the dean of the varsity of science at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
From 2005 till 2011, Leshin labored in numerous totally different roles at NASA, together with because the director of science and exploration on the Goddard Area Flight Middle, deputy director for Goddard’s science and expertise and deputy affiliate administrator of the Exploration Methods Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters.
“I’m each thrilled and humbled to be appointed the director of JPL. In some ways, this looks like a homecoming. A number of the most impactful experiences of my profession have taken place on the Caltech campus and at JPL – classes discovered and targets achieved which have formed me as a pacesetter and an area scientist. The chance to return to working carefully with so many colleagues throughout Caltech – on the Lab and on campus – and at NASA is a dream come true,” Leshin mentioned.
“We’ve got huge alternatives forward to leverage JPL’s international management in robotic area exploration to reply awe-inspiring scientific questions and enhance life right here on Earth. I sit up for my work with Caltech and NASA to make sure that JPL continues to drive innovation throughout the worldwide area ecosystem. Lastly, I’m particularly honored to be the primary lady to carry the title of director of JPL. I do know from private expertise that various groups make larger affect, and I’ll work daily to make sure that JPL is a spot the place all belong and thrive. We’ll dare mighty issues, collectively.”
In her scientific endeavors, Leshin has centered on analyzing the report of water on objects in our photo voltaic system. Leshin was a part of the Mars Science Laboratory crew that analyzed knowledge that confirmed proof of water on Mars, collected by the Curiosity rover.
Leshin has additionally achieved two presidential appointments in her profession. In 2004, President George W. Bush appointed her to his nine-member Fee on Implementation of United States Area Exploration Coverage. In 2013, President Barack Obama appointed her to the advisory board of the Smithsonian Establishment’s Nationwide Air and Area Museum.
Leshin will assume the place on Might 16, 2022, after the semester ends at WPI. She succeeds Michael Watkins, who retired in August 2021, and Lieutenant Common Larry James, who’s at the moment serving as JPL interim director.
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