Milton started at Goddard Space Flight Center as a Pathways Student in 2000 working with the Navigation & Mission Design (595) and Components and Hardware Systems (596) branches. As a co-op intern, Milton received a co-patent for his work on a demise-able momentum exchange system (reaction wheel) which has flown on the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) and Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) missions. In his professional career, he has served in multiple roles in 500 including: avionics deputy lead for the Magnetospheric Multi-Scale (MMS) mission; the mechanical lead of the Navigator GPS receiver on MMS and STP-H6; and, the mechanical lead for the Payload Control Computer on OSAM-1 (formerly Restore-L). Milton has co-patents for the SpaceCube 2 and SpaceCube 3 Reconfigurable Data Processing System. He has also served as a star tracker and inertial measurement unit lead on MMS, NICER, GEDI and PACE, and served as a co-lead, subject matter expert, and study lead of the Avionics Packaging Committee for the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC). Milton served as an associate branch head of the GNC hardware branch from 2014 to 2018 focusing on new business, new technology, and re-chartering branch career paths. He transitioned to OSAM-1 in 2019 to serve as the Space Infrastructure Dexterous Robotics (SPIDER) Payload Systems and Phase lead, and in 2020 he started serving as the OSAM-1 Space Vehicle lead. Milton serves as the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Greenbelt Space Chapter (GSC) President. He holds a BS in Aerospace Engineering from Purdue University, a Masters in Project Management from Johns Hopkins University, and is completing a Masters in Robotics from Johns Hopkins University.

Joanna spent the first half of her career as a mechanical engineer with Bechtel Corporation where she designed and oversaw the construction and startup of power projects in the US and in several countries around the globe. She holds a BS degree in Physics from the University of the South in Sewanee, TN and a BME from Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Ga. Joanna is also a licensed professional engineer in Virginia. After a rewarding engineering career, Joanna transitioned to teaching in 2002 and has taught all levels of physics courses and a popular exploratory engineering elective class. Joanna also serves as chair of the Science Department and the STEM Program Coordinator for a private, all-girls K-12 school outside Washington DC.

Mr. Gerald “Gerry” Dawes is the former Director of the Business Ethics and Compliance Department (BEC) at Con Edison Company of New York. In this position, he was responsible for promoting ethics standards and guiding compliance with applicable laws throughout the company. He has over 35 years of broad energy industry experience particularly in the areas of engineering, construction, natural gas, and electric operations. Gerry has held various other positions of leadership at Con Edison, in departments such as Construction, Gas Operations, Corporate Environment, Health and Safety (EH&S), Distribution Engineering, Customer Service, Energy Management, and Electric Operations. He also served as an Assistant to the Chairman of the company. In addition, he has served as an “Executive on loan” with the American Gas Association (AGA) in Washington, DC, where he worked on a wide range of federal and regional natural gas related initiatives. Gerry is an active member of the New York chapter of the American Association of Blacks in Energy (AABE – NYMAC) where he previously served as President and is a current member of the Executive Board. He is a founder of an AABE collegiate chapter at New York University (NYU) where he has served as a guest lecturer and mentors many students and colleagues. Gerry is also a former Board member of the Ethics and Compliance Association (ECA) and the NYU Tandon School of Engineering (formerly Polytechnic School of Engineering (NYU-Poly)) and is the former President of the School’s Alumni Association. He holds a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Polytechnic University in Brooklyn, New York and has participated in various professional development programs offered by the Ethics and Compliance Initiative (ECI), the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE), the Gas Technology Institute (GTI), General Electric (GE), Power Technologies Incorporated (PTI), and the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.

Betsy received a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from Purdue University. While still in college, Betsy began her career with NASA at Langley Research Center gaining almost 2 years of experience focusing on integration, design, and testing of aircraft and their control systems such as the F-18 and blended-wing body (BWB). Upon graduation, Betsy began working with NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) as a Guidance, Navigation and Control System (GNC) Instructor for the International Space Station (ISS). In this role, Betsy trained numerous astronauts and flight controllers in the Part-Task Trainer (PTT) and Space Station Training Facility (SSTF) simulators. As Betsy’s career advanced, she worked as a Boeing Systems Engineer testing the US flight software for the GNC System and became a console operator in the Mission Evaluation Room for flights 1R, 1P, 2A.2b, 3A, and 4A, 5A (Shift Lead for 5A).  Throughout her career at JSC, Ms. Fortman traveled overseas helping to train astronauts and cosmonauts on the various systems of ISS and the Russian Soyuz Vehicles. She also served as Deputy of Training Operations (DTOR) in Star City, Russia. Upon returning to the states, Ms. Fortman’s career shifted from current spaceflight operations to future spacecraft design analysis. Betsy worked as Chief Engineer of the Astronaut Office Exploration Branch tracking major design changes while assessing habitability and operability for Commercial Crew and Orion. As a former NASA Engineer of over 18+ years, Ms. Fortman now focuses her time on helping to inspire the next generation of engineers. Betsy has worked as a High School Chemistry & Physical Science teacher and most recently has been teaching online since 2017. By using innovative teaching platforms, such as Koala 3D, she strives to keep learning both interactive and engaging.

Mary spent the beginning of her career as a computer programmer and systems engineer, holding positions at Texas Instruments and the Chicago Board Options Exchange. For the past 14 years, she has focused on K-12 robotics education. In addition to being an Engineering Tomorrow presenter, Mary is pursuing a Ph.D. at Virginia Tech in Engineering and Robotics Education.

Travis Sluss found his first start in the technology industry at an early age printing labels for his local community at 10 years old. A few years later Travis became the youngest intern that a recognized New York City computer-consulting firm had ever accepted. Later that summer he built his first computer and his passion for technology was cemented. Following this fervor for all things tech, Travis spent several years working in the music industry producing records, concerts and more for bands like The Spin Doctors. Travis began MacInspires with the goal of empowering both people and businesses with technology and education. He has over a decade of teaching experience in many areas of technology.

Bill is a Founding Partner of Global Infrastructure Partners - a private equity fund focused on energy and transportation asset investing and ownership. Prior to the formation of GIP in 2006, Bill spent 23 years at GE, where he most recently served as President and CEO of GE Infrastructure. Before leading GE Infrastructure, he was President and CEO of GE Specialty Materials. In that role he oversaw key acquisitions including those that led to the GE entry and expansion in the water technology business. Prior to joining GE, he held engineering and marketing positions at Union Carbide and was an engagement manager at McKinsey & Co. focusing on energy and transport industries. Bill holds M.S. and B.S. degrees in Engineering from Northwestern University and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, respectively. In 2023, Bill was elected into the National Academy of Engineering.

Telva leads the development and execution of strategies that will ensure positive change toward a high performing, inclusive culture at General Motors. She shepherds global impact in diversity and creates collaborations and partnerships that promote equity inside and outside of the company. Within this role, Telva leads corporate workforce strategy, where the focus is building the agile workforce of the future while creating new pathways of entry and career development. She is also a member of the General Motors Inclusion Advisory Board. Previously, Telva was director of Workplace Engineering and Operations Solutions in the Sustainable Workplaces organization at GM. She supported the global footprint for facility engineering, technologies, energy strategy and multiple facility management strategies. Telva earned her BS and MS degrees in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University.

Alex has over a decade of technical, financial services, and management experience. Prior to her current role leading the North American division of Centrica Business Solutions, a global energy solutions company, she worked in the renewable energy and capital divisions of General Electric. She started her career as an engineer at Kiewit Infrastructure Group. Alex holds an MBA from Babson College and a bachelor's in Civil Engineering from Bucknell University.

Erik has over 25 years of experience in various engineering and leadership roles, including 17 years at GE in R&D, product development, process improvement, technical sales, and business management. Since 2008, he has been a member of the operations team at Global Infrastructure Partners, working on business improvement in a variety of infrastructure businesses in the energy and transportation sectors. Erik is the author of 6 patents and numerous technical publications, and holds Chemical Engineering degrees from Cornell University (BS) and the University of Minnesota (PhD).

Jay has over 30 years of experience in the automotive, aerospace and advanced water technology fields. After starting her career in product development for Delphi/General Motors in 1988, Jay joined Chrysler in 1997 as a Powertrain Systems Engineer. In 2005, she was named Senior Manager and Chief Engineer of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ (FCA) Hybrid Development Center. From 2009-2012, Jay served as Global Director, Electrified Powertrains for FCA. In 2012, she joined Eaton Aerospace as Group VP Engineering and Technology, and from 2015-2019 she was the Senior VP, Chief Innovation and Technology Officer of Xylem Inc. Jay earned a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Mysore University, Karnataka, India, an MS in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, India, and an MS in Mechanical Engineering from Wayne State University.

Kristine has seven years of teaching experience in the areas of engineering, computer science, math and finance. Prior to her role as an educator, Kristine spent over ten years working at a private equity fund that invested university endowment funds and contributions from high net worth individuals in medical device companies. She also served as the Director of Business Development at Haemonetics Corp., where she was responsible for analyzing, negotiating, and managing corporate investments in new technologies. Her early career included a variety of technical roles at ITT Fluid Technology Corp. and GE Aircraft Engines. Kristine holds a NYS Teacher Certification from Manhattanville College, a master’s in Management Science from MIT Sloan School of Management, a master’s in Electrical Engineering from MIT and a bachelor's in Electrical Engineering from Yale University.