Event Description
President Shirley Ann Jackson moderates a panel discussion featuring two distinguished alumnae about two great forces that are disrupting careers and transforming the nature of leadership – the current pandemic, an example of the intersecting vulnerabilities with potentially cascading consequences that arise in an intensely interconnected world, and the increasingly widespread adoption of game-changing technologies that range from videoconferencing, to data analytics, AI, and robotics.
Moderator
THE HONORABLE SHIRLEY ANN JACKSON, Ph.D.
The 18th president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson, Ph.D., is the 18th president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the oldest technological research university in the United States, where she has led an extraordinary transformation since 1999. Described by Time magazine as “perhaps the ultimate role model for women in science,” Dr. Jackson has held senior leadership positions in academia, government, industry, and research. A theoretical physicist, Dr. Jackson holds an S.B. in Physics, and a Ph.D. in Theoretical Elementary Particle Physics, both from MIT.
In September 2014, United States President Barack Obama appointed Dr. Jackson as Co-Chair of the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, where she served until January 2017. Dr. Jackson also served on the U.S. Secretary of State International Security Advisory Board from 2011-2017, and the U.S. Secretary of Energy Advisory Board from 2013-2017. From 2009 to 2014, Dr. Jackson served on the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), and, as part of PCAST, was Co-Chair of the President’s Innovation and Technology Advisory Committee (PITAC).
Before taking the helm at Rensselaer, Dr. Jackson was Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), from 1995 to 1999. At the NRC, Dr. Jackson conceived and promulgated risk informed, performance-based regulation and created a new planning, budgeting, and performance management process (PBPM). During her tenure at the NRC, Dr. Jackson spearheaded the formation of the International Nuclear Regulators Association (INRA), and served as its Chairman from 1997-1999.
Dr. Jackson is a Life Member of the MIT Corporation, and a former Vice-Chair of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution. In October 2017, she was named Regent Emerita of the Smithsonian Institution. She currently serves on the boards of corporations that include FedEx and PSEG. She is a former member of the board of the World Economic Forum USA (WEF USA), IBM, Medtronic, the New York Stock Exchange, Key Corp, AT&T, Marathon Oil, U.S. Steel, and Sealed Air Corporation.
Dr. Jackson is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering, the American Philosophical Society, and the Council on Foreign Relations. She is an international fellow of the British Royal Academy of Engineering, and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Physical Society, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, of which she also served as past president. She holds 55 honorary doctoral degrees.
In 2018, Dr. Jackson was awarded the W.E.B. DuBois medal from the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University. The medal honors those who have made significant contributions to African and African American history and culture, and more broadly, individuals who advocate for intercultural understanding and human rights in an increasingly global and interconnected world.
In 2007, describing her as “a national treasure,” the National Science Board selected Dr. Jackson as the recipient of The Vannevar Bush Award for “a lifetime of achievements in scientific research, education, and senior statesman-like contributions to public policy.”
In 2016, United States President Barack Obama awarded Dr. Jackson the National Medal of Science, the nation’s highest honor in science and engineering.
Panelists
Mary Humiston ’90 MBA
Chief Human Resources Executive
Member, Rensselaer Capital Region Executive Council
Mary Humiston ’90 is a Senior Advisor with Accenture’s Talent & Organization practice and built their CHRO Forum; a newly formed collaboration of the world’s top Chief Human Resources Officers.
Ms. Humiston also recently launched Modern Career; offering career coaching, workshops and a career podcast enabling professionals to more successfully navigate an ever-changing world and workplace.
Prior, Ms. Humiston was the Chief Human Resources Officer for Rolls-Royce plc headquartered in London. Rolls-Royce plc is the world’s second largest maker of aircraft engines and power systems. Ms. Humiston oversaw a workforce of 55,000 across 30 countries and led the Company’s transformation.
Before joining Rolls-Royce, Ms. Humiston was Senior Vice President, Human Resources, Communications and Public Affairs at Applied Materials for six years. She had additional regional responsibilities for Europe & Asia, overseeing all regional Country Presidents and their teams.
Prior to joining Applied Materials, Ms. Humiston was Vice President of Human Resources at Honeywell International Inc., a diversified global technology and manufacturing company, for six years with responsibility for various corporate and international organizations.
Ms. Humiston started her career at General Electric on the esteemed Human Resources Leadership Program and was selected to join GE’s Corporate Audit staff, spending seven years at GE in HR and Finance leadership.
Ms. Humiston earned a Master of Business Administration from Rensselaer, and studied at Siena College and Oxford University during her undergraduate years. She was awarded the Epsilon Delta Sigma award from Rensselaer for outstanding academic achievement and is a Distinguished Alumnus of Siena College. In 2016, she built a leadership academy with Oxford University for Rolls Royce.
Susana Navarro-Valenti ’88G, ’92 Ph.D., P’16
President and CEO, Navarro Research and Engineering, Inc.
Dr. Susana Navarro-Valenti founded Navarro, an award-winning, woman-owned small business that is a premier provider of environmental and technical services to the United States Department of Energy (DOE), the United States Department of Defense (DOD), the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
Dr. Navarro-Valenti earned a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and has over 20 years of experience in the nuclear and safety fields. She started the firm in 1993 with her husband, Mark Valenti ’88G,’92 Ph.D., P’16. Both worked in Oak Ridge at the time; Dr. Navarro-Valenti at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Dr. Valenti for the Y-12 Weapons Plant. Under Dr. Navarro-Valenti’s leadership and vision, Navarro has grown to a firm with $100M in revenue and is one of the nation’s strongest, most successful, most stable small business.
Dr. Navarro-Valenti also holds a master’s degree in nuclear engineering from Rensselaer, and a Bachelor of Science from the Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana in Mexico. Dr. Navarro-Valenti has a strong commitment to ensure that Navarro provides the best in services and to be extremely high-quality, efficient and customer focused. She has successfully managed this extensive growth by proactively building up the infrastructure of the company to accommodate the growth while maintaining the level of excellence in services to which their clients have grown accustomed.