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By NASA
As a Human Resource Business Partner at NASA Headquarters, Selina Salgado describes her job as helping with “all things people” for the enterprise. By facilitating technological solutions to human resources (HR) challenges and needs, she excels at an often-underestimated aspect of Digital Transformation (DT): the interpersonal side. As a champion of community building, knowledge sharing, and digital upskilling, Selina was an easy selection for this month’s Digital Transformer award.
Selina started at NASA in 2019 as a Pathways intern and previously worked as a mentoring coordinator for Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), which is where her Digital Transformation journey began. At MSFC, she created an all-in-one, automated system for open job postings, which decreased the agency’s time to hire and increased visibility for available positions. She has aspirations for further leveraging these types of systems to improve inclusive teaming across NASA by making HR tools available and interoperable across centers. Her current team under the Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHCO) operates with an 80-20 mentality, working to create common tools and solutions that are 80% interoperable and 20% customizable to the specific organization or scenario.
In addition to her technical work on digital HR tools like the automated job board, Selina takes initiative to help people understand what transformation means to them and how to practice transformation in their daily lives. In collaboration with Jess Deibert, DT Digital Academy Lead, Selina created the new Transformation Tips (TxTips) series, which features NASA employees’ tech-related tips for doing their work. The instant popularity of the community-led series led to speaker requests for TxTip presentations from several other offices at NASA, including the Office of STEM Engagement.
Most recently, Selina has become a key contributor and partner in NASA’s Summer of AI upskilling campaign to help employees maximize the benefits of AI while managing risks. As a self-taught developer, Selina has created several tools and apps to streamline agency-wide collaboration and data collection. She leveraged PowerApps, Power Automate, and Power BI, integrated with SharePoint, to feed data to a dashboard used by the Agency Chief AI Officer to brief the Administrator on impact metrics from the Summer of AI campaign. Selina also developed and executed several events to engage and excite the workforce around this campaign, including conceiving the agency’s first “Battle of the Bots” event. Her Reddit-style “Ask Me Anything” event helped employees understand the differences in large language models by pitting ChatGPT against Microsoft CoPilot to respond to participant-submitted prompts and questions. The Battle of the Bots saw the highest engagement of any asynchronous Summer of AI event.
Selina’s educational background aligns with her focus on the connective and collaborative aspects of Digital Transformation. She received her bachelor’s degree in business management with a focus in human resource management and her master’s degree in education and student affairs, which led to her interest in NASA’s internship and mentorship programs. The connection piece, she says, is what she enjoys most about collaborating with DT. “If you run into an issue, there’s a community of practice out there for you to reach out to and engage with…to build that network with other employees that are interested in and passionate about transformation.”
The other influence Selina points to along her Digital Transformation journey is her military background. “I grew up in a military household, and then I joined the Navy right out of high school. There’s a culture there of how to get things done,” says Selina. “What drives my passion for processes and systems is that it’s transferrable to somebody else…I need to be able to pass that on to the next person.” She gets energized by learning new tools and finding solutions to roadblocks, especially when she can establish procedures for others to leverage and build on her work. “That’s something that I love about transformation and just change in general—that you get to develop and learn and connect with new people.”
If there’s one message Selina hopes to spread at NASA through her achievements as a Digital Transformer, it’s that Digital Transformation is for everyone. “You don’t have to be in IT, you don’t have to have that background or technical [ability],” she says. “I mean, I’m in HR. Any field at NASA can utilize the digital landscape and digital transformation. Those principles and resources are available for everybody.”
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By NASA
The NASA Ames Science Directorate recognizes the outstanding contributions of (pictured left to right) Sangsavang Stevie Phothisane, Taryn Kavanagh, Andro Rios, and Hami Ray. Their commitment to the NASA mission represents the talent, camaraderie, and vision needed to explore this world and beyond.
Earth Science Star: Sangsavang Stevie Phothisane
Sangsavang Stevie Phothisane, a Deputy Project Manager in the Earth Science Project Office (ESPO), demonstrated outstanding leadership as the site manager for both of the field campaigns of the Arctic Radiation-Cloud-Aerosol-Surface Interaction Experiment (ARCSIX) based at Pituffik Space Base, Greenland. He has excelled in managing this large and complex project, which encompasses over 75 scientists and engineers and 3 research aircraft, in an extremely remote location 750 miles north of the Arctic Circle.
Space Science & Astrobiology Star: Taryn Kavanagh
Taryn Kavanagh, Research Support Specialist, is an indispensable member of the Astrophysics Branch. She is a consummate professional in all of her administrative duties and goes above and beyond expectations to support our team, our customers and our mission. Taryn recently supported many high-level visits with increased workload in addition to meeting branch needs which has boosted morale and goodwill with both internal and external partners.
Space Science & Astrobiology Star of the Month: Andro Rios
Dr. Andro Rios, a research scientist in the Exobiology Branch, established new strategic partnerships with San Jose State University and Skyline College through the Science Mission Directorate Bridge Program (now MOSAICS). He was awarded grant funding for the ASPIRE Program (Astrobiology Scholars Program Immersive Research Experience), offering a two-year internship for under-represented undergraduates to work with NASA scientists and engineers. Dr. Rios selected and successfully led the first cohort of students for ASPIRE this summer.
Space Biosciences Star: Hami Ray
Hami Ray has stepped up as the Deputy Project Manager for the Lunar Explorer Instrument for space biology Applications (LEIA) mission to study the biological effects of the lunar surface’s extreme environmental conditions on living organisms. She has been instrumental in timely and critical process improvement efforts for LEIA to enable project success. In addition to Ray’s role with LEIA, she also excels as the Deputy Project Manager for the Space Synthetic Biology (SynBio) mission and as the Project Manager for the GLOW mission concept to explore Venus’ upper atmospheric dynamics.
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By European Space Agency
The European Service Module that will power the Orion spacecraft during the Artemis III mission to the Moon is soon on its way to the United States.
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By NASA
Learn Home GLOBE Alumna and Youth for… Earth Science Overview Learning Resources Science Activation Teams SME Map Opportunities More Science Stories Science Activation Highlights Citizen Science 4 min read
GLOBE Alumna and Youth for Habitat Program Lead Named Scientist of the Month in Alaska
As a 16-year old high school graduate, Maggie House decided to leave the military base in Germany where she lived with her family and go to college close to nature in Fairbanks, Alaska. She had lived in many countries and US states and knew she was ready. At the University of Alaska Fairbanks Troth Yeddha’ campus in Fall 2022, Maggie enrolled in a 300-level Watershed Management course, which required all students to implement a Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) project and poster. Maggie’s project focused on using the GLOBE Observer App to monitor the erosion of nearby Cripple Creek, which had a history of mining and made Fairbanks famous for its gold. She and a classmate wrote a funded mini-grant proposal to study how ice was related to erosion. While not on the frozen creek, Maggie worked as a student employee with the NASA Science Activation Program’s Arctic and Earth STEM Integrating GLOBE and NASA (SIGNs) team at the International Arctic Research Center, during which she trained teachers and mentored students at Alaska’s first-ever Student Research Symposium in 2022. Maggie also wrote an article about the symposium, published on the University of Alaska Fairbanks News page: https://www.uaf.edu/news/alaskan-youth-present-research-earth-day-symposium.php
When the ice melted and the symposium ended, Maggie wanted to study the freshwater habitats of the Creek using GLOBE hydrosphere protocols, so she wrote another proposal. Maggie got a full scholarship and grant funding through Biomedical Learning and Student Training (BLaST), supported by the National Institutes of Health. Her work earned recognition in the US Fish and Wildlife Service story, “Natural Flows Return to Cripple Creek” and honors as the December 2023/January 2024 BLaST Scientist of the Month. The story does not stop there. In May, 2024, Maggie House graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree and received the first-ever GLOBE internship at the Fairbanks Soil and Water Conservation District, where Maggie House leads the summer Youth for Habitat program for middle school students. Today, you can find Maggie in Cripple Creek near Fairbanks, Alaska, teaching students to learn science by doing science.
“I have a firm belief that the health of our environment is intertwined with the health of humans. I am interested in making science-related issues more understandable, for everyone to be a part of their local community. In my future, I see myself continuing to work towards strengthening the relationship between humans and nature and promoting the conservation of our dependence on one another.” – Maggie House
Arctic and Earth SIGNs created the conditions for Maggie as an undergraduate student to collect OpenSource GLOBE data that contributed to local solutions, to be awarded funding to pursue actionable research, and to be a leader for educators and future learners. Maggie’s data on ice conditions informed the engineering redesign of the Cripple Creek stream restoration project. Her success in using GLOBE protocols and culturally responsive research methods modeled by Arctic and Earth SIGNs gave her the confidence to write a research proposal and be awarded a full undergraduate research scholarship. Maggie was the first person in the world to monitor aquatic invertebrates in Cripple Creek just three weeks after flow was restored to the creek after 85 years. In Arctic and Earth SIGNs, environmental stewardship is a culminating part of the Learning Framework. Now, Maggie leads the stewardship of salmon habitat in Cripple Creek and mentors middle school youth to pursue STEM fields as a GLOBE trainer and mentor. Maggie’s story matters because one person, with a Science Activation support network and a focus on real-world environmental issues, can make a difference.
Arctic & Earth SIGNs is supported by NASA under cooperative agreement award number NNX16AC52A and is part of NASA’s Science Activation Portfolio. Learn more about how Science Activation connects NASA science experts, real content, and experiences with community leaders to do science in ways that activate minds and promote deeper understanding of our world and beyond: https://science.nasa.gov/learn
NASA Science Activation Program participant alumna Maggie House leads youth in GLOBE macroinvertebrate identification at an intergenerational workshop in June, 2024, using a microscope she purchased with her grant funds. Christi Buffington Share
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Members of NASA Glenn Research Center’s Rainbow Alliance Advisory Group hosted a booth to share information on NASA during the “Pride in the CLE” event. Credit: NASA/Steven Logan For the second year in a row, NASA Glenn Research Center’s Rainbow Alliance Advisory Group (RAAG), with support from additional Glenn employees, marched in Cleveland’s “Pride in the CLE” festival on June 1. This year, they widened their presence by staffing an exhibit booth, which showcased NASA and inclusion in the workplace.
Throughout the day, RAAG members engaged with more than 1,500 members of the public, distributing NASA stickers and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion pins. They also shared information on employment and internship opportunities and details of NASA Glenn’s work in aeronautics and aerospace.
NASA’s Glenn Research Center employees march in the “Pride in the CLE” parade in downtown Cleveland. Credit: NASA/Steven Logan The event was supported by NASA Glenn’s Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity and the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility committee.
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