Dr. James Kenyon, Director of NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio

The road to the Moon goes through Cleveland. With a budget of approximately $900 million, a staff of more than 3,200 civil servants, over 725 patents, and over 120 R&D 100 Awards, Glenn — under Dr. Kenyon's leadership and in accordance with NASA's mandates — is providing integral support to Artemis, NASA’s mission to return us to the Moon, overseeing the service module that will propel the Orion Space Capsule out of Earth’s orbit and around the Moon.

Founded in 1941, Glenn Research Center has led NASA’s electric propulsion development efforts and been integral in many of NASA’s most famous missions transforming aviation and space exploration — from Mercury and Apollo to the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station; playing important roles in robotic exploration missions, including the Mars rovers and Cassini’s mission to Saturn.

Prior to becoming Glenn’s director. Dr. Kenyon served as director of the Advanced Air Vehicles Program in the Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) at NASA Headquarters in Washington, led advanced programs and technology at Pratt & Whitney, and worked for 17 years in the Department of Defense where he was responsible for strategic planning, policy guidance and management oversight of DoD aerospace science and technology programs.

This conversation tapped into my latent childhood love and curiosity for exploring the great cosmos around spaceship Earth — Dr. Kenyon and I explore his passion for aerospace and path to NASA, the history and evolution of the Glenn Research Center, and its significant impact here in Cleveland, his reflections on leadership, decision making and talent, and ultimately what’s on the horizon, for exploring the unknown in both air and space.

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LINKS:
Connect with Dr. James Kenyon: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kenyon-204174172
NASA's Office of STEM Engagement: https://www.nasa.gov/glenn-stem/

NASA's Internships: https://www.nasa.gov/learning-resources/internship-programs/

Doing Business with NASA Glenn: https://www.nasa.gov/glenn-business-and-partnerships/
NASA Glenn's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nasaglenn/
NASA Glenn's X: https://twitter.com/NASAglenn

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Past guests include Justin Bibb (Mayor of Cleveland), Pat Conway (Great Lakes Brewing), Steve Potash (OverDrive), Umberto P. Fedeli (The Fedeli Group), Lila Mills (Signal Cleveland), Stewart Kohl (The Riverside Company), Mitch Kroll (Findaway — Acquired by Spotify), and many more.

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