03.16.07 Bill Johnson Kennedy Space Center, Fla. 321-867-2468 RELEASE: 09-07 NASA NAMES JANET PETRO NEW DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF KENNEDY SPACE CENTER NASA today selected Janet Petro as the new deputy director of the agency's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., effective April 29. Petro succeeds William (Bill) W. Parsons, who assumed the position as the director of the center in January. Prior to joining NASA, Petro served in various management positions for Science Applications International Corporation, also known as SAIC, where she provided extensive program management and technical leadership since December 2000. She directly interacted with senior-level government customers, and was responsible for overseeing program and project managers and providing operational guidance on various technical projects. "I am extremely pleased that Janet has decided to join the leadership team at Kennedy," said Parsons. "She brings with her a strong technical management background and extensive engineering leadership that is directly applicable to the challenging future here at Kennedy." At SAIC, Petro held positions of increasing responsibility within the corporation's Satellite Beach Subsurface Engineering and Data Center Operations, including division and deputy operations manager. She directed technical teams in the design, installation and sustainment support for the Subsurface Engineering and Logistics Support contract. In SAIC's St. Petersburg division, she led the Cooperative Engagement Capability Pre-Planned Product Improvement Program Team in developing supportability products for an upgraded signal data processing assembly. "I am honored I was selected to join the talented team of professionals at KSC and feel excited to be a part of the tremendously important mission we have been given," said Petro. Earlier in her career, Petro held various senior management positions with McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, including program manager for overseeing and executing a classified $13-million U.S. Department of Defense program at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The program involved integrating, supporting and coordinating payloads onto various space vehicles at U.S. Air Force and NASA facilities. Petro served as a captain in the U.S. Army's aviation branch. She holds a bachelor's degree in engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., and a Master of Science degree in business administration from Boston University Metropolitan College. She resides in Indian Harbor Beach, Fla., with her daughter, Hannah, and son, Andrew. -end- To subscribe to the list, send a message to: ksc-subscribe@newsletters.nasa.gov To remove your address from the list, send a message to: ksc-unsubscribe@newsletters.nasa.gov
