Jump to content
Join the Alien Search, login or register FREE on Aliens and Space Forum
Members Can Post Anonymously On This Site

Langley Celebrates Women’s History Month: Dr. Kanama Bivins 

NASA

By NASA
in NASA

 Share

Recommended Posts

  • Publishers
NASA Mentor

NASA

Posted
  • Publishers
Posted
Dr. Kanama Bivins is Acting Associate Director at NASA Langley Research Center. She is pictured here smiling and wearing a grey sweater and necklace. She is standing in front of a poster featuring imagery from NASA missions, including Artemis and
Dr. Kanama Bivins is Acting Associate Director at NASA Langley Research Center.
NASA/David C. Bowman

Dr. Kanama Bivins currently serves as the Acting Associate Director at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Prior to this role, Kanama was NASA Langley’s Chief Financial Officer. Kanama grew up in a military family and moved often but she considers the Hampton Roads area home. Following high school graduation, Kanama joined the United States Air Force where she served as a financial manager. She holds a doctorate degree in strategic leadership from Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Kanama says her untraditional path to NASA highlights the many career opportunities the agency offers.

Who or what inspired you to choose your career and why? 

I didn’t choose a career. I chose the military. I chose service. In doing so, they [the U.S. Air Force] chose a career for me. Of course, they test you and they make determinations based on what they see as to what you should do. The Air Force chose financial management for me, and I really liked it. I earned my bachelor’s degree in accounting and continued along that career path. There were times that I considered doing something more hands on or operational [in the Air Force] and there were mentors along the way who said, “No, what we do is important and let me tell you why,” and that helped a lot. It was a non-traditional way of getting to do the work that I do now.

What do you find most rewarding about working with NASA?  

I think the opportunity to do this detail [as Acting Associate Director] is very unique to NASA. This has been great because I have been in financial management the balance of my career. I appreciate the opportunity to step away and do something different while still having a tie to that financial piece because I do manage the center budget primarily now. I think you can become very familiar with what you do so I enjoy being in a role that allows me to touch so many parts of the center. It gives me a very tangible connection to the center and that has proven invaluable to me.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?  

I love spending time with my family. My daughter just turned 16. I know she’s going to go off in the world soon so I’m trying to maximize my time with her. My husband and I also love to travel. We are huge National Football League (NFL) fans and love following our team, the San Francisco 49ers. My daughter sails competitively so we travel the country following her for sailing.

Personally, I try to become involved in activities that aren’t familiar to me. I sit on the Board [of Governors] of the Virginia Opera, which is not something I was familiar with or thought that I would do. The experience has been eye opening and amazing! I am also actively involved with my church and engage with my community through the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission (HRPDC) and the Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization (HRTPO).

What advice would you give to someone who might be interested in pursuing a career at NASA?

Find out what it is that you like to do and the thing about NASA is there is a place for you here. Whether it’s human resources, financial management, procurement, aerosciences, space technology and exploration, or engineering: all have a place here at NASA. Once you find the career that you want to pursue, look for opportunities to connect with people who do that work. There is a lot of information that you can only get from talking to somebody that actually does that work or has that experience, so be targeted as you network and intentional about connecting with people who are doing the type of work that you are interested in pursuing. Also be prepared and do your research to understand the different paths to your desired career opportunity. No matter what it is you choose to do, there are opportunities at NASA for any career field.

How does your background and heritage contribute to your perspective and approach in your role at NASA?  

My parents are both from overseas, so I am a first-generation American. I have a diverse family background and grew up surrounded by people who looked completely different [from me] but who shared the same values. We all came from the same place. That is also how I approach NASA. We are all very different. We all have very different experiences. But we all share the same mission and we are all focused on the good of NASA. I also came from a military family which means I was surrounded by very diverse people growing up because the military is that shared value and vision. I hope it has allowed me to approach everything in a very well-rounded fashion.

Facebook logo
@NASALaRC
Instagram logo
@NASA_Langley

Explore More

default-thumbnail.jpg
3 min read

Langley Celebrates Women’s History Month: Melanie Grande

Article 10 mins ago
gwen-wheatle-headshot.jpg?w=300
5 min read

Langley Celebrates Women’s History Month: Gwendolyn Wheatle

Article 11 mins ago
whm-2.jpg?w=300
3 min read

Langley Celebrates Women’s History Month: Anum Ashraf

Article 13 mins ago

View the full article

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Similar Topics

    • NASA
      Oral History with R. Walter Cunningham
      By NASA
      1 Min Read Oral History with R. Walter Cunningham
      Lunar module pilot Walter Cunningham writes with a space pen as he performs flight tasks on the ninth day of the Apollo 7 mission. Credits: NASA Selected for NASA’s third astronaut class in 1963, Cunningham served as the backup Lunar Module Pilot for Apollo 1. He piloted the 11-day flight of Apollo 7 in October 1968, the first manned flight test of the Apollo spacecraft. The crew executed maneuvers enabling them to practice for upcoming Apollo lunar orbit rendezvous missions and provided the first live television transmission of onboard crew activities. Cunningham served as the Chief of the Skylab branch under the Flight Crew Directorate at Johnson Space Center in 1969 until his retirement and move to the private sector in 1971.
      Read more about R. Walter Cunningham
      NASA Oral History, May 24, 1999 NASA Biography Apollo Astronaut Walter Cunningham Dies at 90 The transcripts available on this site are created from audio-recorded oral history interviews. To preserve the integrity of the audio record, the transcripts are presented with limited revisions and thus reflect the candid conversational style of the oral history format. Brackets and ellipses indicate where the text has been annotated or edited for clarity. Any personal opinions expressed in the interviews should not be considered the official views or opinions of NASA, the NASA History Office, NASA historians, or staff members.
      View the full article
    • NASA
      Oral History with Karol J. Bobko
      By NASA
      1 Min Read Oral History with Karol J. Bobko
      View of STS 51-D crew commander Karol Bobko training with the Arriflex 16mm camera. Credits: NASA A veteran of three space flights, Karol J. “Bo” Bobko was selected as an astronaut in 1969 and served as a crewmember on the Skylab Medical Experiments Altitude Test (SMEAT) 56-day ground simulation in preparation for the Skylab missions. He served in various positions supporting the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project and the first Approach and Landing Tests for the Space Shuttle before flying as the STS-6 pilot and as the mission commander on STS-51D and STS-51J.
      Read more about Karol J. “Bo” Bobko
      NASA Oral History, February 12, 2002 NASA Biography The transcripts available on this site are created from audio-recorded oral history interviews. To preserve the integrity of the audio record, the transcripts are presented with limited revisions and thus reflect the candid conversational style of the oral history format. Brackets and ellipses indicate where the text has been annotated or edited for clarity. Any personal opinions expressed in the interviews should not be considered the official views or opinions of NASA, the NASA History Office, NASA historians, or staff members.
      View the full article
    • European Space Agency
      How we made history by landing on a comet
      By European Space Agency
      Video: 00:09:09 On 12 November 2014, after a ten-year journey through the Solar System and over 500 million kilometres from home, Rosetta’s lander Philae made space exploration history by touching down on a comet for the first time. On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of this extraordinary feat, we celebrate by taking a look back over the mission's highlights.
      Rosetta was an ESA mission with contributions from its Member States and NASA. It studied Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko for over two years, including delivering lander Philae to the comet’s surface. Philae was provided by a consortium led by DLR, MPS, CNES and ASI.
      read the article Philae’s extraordinary comet landing relived.
      View the full article
    • NASA
      Oral History with Stephen G. Jurczyk, 1962 – 2023
      By NASA
      1 Min Read Oral History with Stephen G. Jurczyk, 1962 – 2023
      NASA Acting Administrator Stephen G. Jurczyk Credits: NASA Steve Jurczyk’s NASA career began in 1988 at Langley Research Center as an engineer in the Electronic Systems Branch. During his time at Langley, he served in other roles, including director of engineering and director of research and technology.  Jurczyk was named as director of Langley in 2014, then in 2015 he left Langley to serve as the associate administrator for the Space Technology Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters.  He quickly rose to the rank of associate administrator in 2018, and in January 2021 was named the agency’s acting administrator
      Read more about Steve Jurczyk
      NASA Oral History, September 22, 1921 NASA Honors Steve Jurczyk The transcripts available on this site are created from audio-recorded oral history interviews. To preserve the integrity of the audio record, the transcripts are presented with limited revisions and thus reflect the candid conversational style of the oral history format. Brackets and ellipses indicate where the text has been annotated or edited for clarity. Any personal opinions expressed in the interviews should not be considered the official views or opinions of NASA, the NASA History Office, NASA historians, or staff members.
      View the full article
    • NASA
      Oral History with Mary L. Cleave, 1947 – 2023
      By NASA
      1 Min Read Oral History with Mary L. Cleave, 1947 – 2023
      61B-21-008 (26 Nov-1 Dec 1985) —The STS 61-B crew on the flight deck of the earth-orbiting Atlantis. Left to right, back row, are astronauts Jerry L. Ross, Brewster Shaw Jr., Mary L. Cleave, and Bryan D. O'Connor; and payload specialist Rodolfo Neri. Front row, left to right, payload specialist Charles D. Walker and astronaut Sherwood C. Spring. A veteran of two space flights, Dr. Cleave served as a mission specialist on STS-61B and STS-30.  She went on to join NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and worked in the Laboratory for Hydrospheric Processes as the Project Manager for SeaWiFS, an ocean color sensor which is monitoring vegetation globally.  Dr. Cleave next served as Deputy Associate Administrator, Office of Earth Science, NASA Headquarters, until her retirement in 2007.
      Read more about Dr. Mary L. Cleave
      NASA Oral History, March 5, 2002 NASA Biography NASA Remembers Trailblazing Astronaut, Scientist Mary Cleave In Memoriam: Mary Cleave The transcripts available on this site are created from audio-recorded oral history interviews. To preserve the integrity of the audio record, the transcripts are presented with limited revisions and thus reflect the candid conversational style of the oral history format. Brackets and ellipses indicate where the text has been annotated or edited for clarity. Any personal opinions expressed in the interviews should not be considered the official views or opinions of NASA, the NASA History Office, NASA historians, or staff members.
      View the full article

  • Check out these Videos

×
×
  • Create New...