Rosalie Allen, NASA Marshall Center Director of Strategic Analysis and Communications, Appointed to Senior Executive Service

Rosalie W. Allen has recently been appointed to the Senior Executive Service as Director of the Office of Strategic Analysis and Communications at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., NASA’s center for developmental engineering, propulsion and space systems integration. The Senior Executive Service is the personnel system that covers most of the top managerial, supervisory and policy positions in the executive branch of the federal government.

Historically, the Marshall Center was responsible for development of the Saturn V rocket that carried the first men to the moon, as well as for developing the propulsion systems on today’s space shuttle. Now, the center is playing a key role in engineering, integrating and delivering the space systems required to achieve the nation’s Vision for Space Exploration, a long-term space exploration initiative, including a return to the moon that will become a stepping stone toward exploration of Mars and other destinations. These new systems include the Ares I crew launch vehicle, the Ares V a heavy lift cargo launch vehicle and a lunar exploration lander.

Helping enable the center’s missions, Allen has served as a key leader of Marshall’s Office of Strategic Analysis and Communications, a key support office at Marshall, since October 2004, when she was named deputy director of the office. As leader of this organization, Allen is responsible for leading the development of an integrated strategic analysis, planning, and communications capability that will support key center decision-making and relationship-building based on business knowledge, organizational performance assessment, priority, and strategy.

Allen oversees communications planning and implementation designed to foster effective stakeholder relationships, strategic research and analysis of stakeholders and the external environment.

She also oversees performance and capability management, to define, develop and enhance analytical skills and competencies for the center — all designed to better integrate data and information between and among organizations and create greater organizational awareness, preparedness, and planning.

From 2001 to 2004, prior to leading the Office of Strategic Analysis and Communications, Allen managed NASA’s Space Launch Initiative and Control Office — the office responsible for programs that investigated future NASA space transportation systems. She was responsible for program planning and resources management of NASA’s largest research and development effort of that time.

In 1999, Allen served as program development manager of Marshall’s Space Transportation Directorate, managing planning requirements and communication strategies; formulating and implementing organizational and program plans; and guiding advocacy for Marshall’s space transportation systems.

Allen served as program manager of NASA’s Space Product Development Program from 1996 to 1999, leading NASA’s commercial microgravity research efforts. Allen provided management and direction of activities to ensure that 15 flight research projects were delivered for the space shuttle and International Space Station.

From 1995 to 1996, Allen was business manager for NASA’s Microgravity Research Program Office, responsible for developing and coordinating overall budget and schedule activities for research projects at five NASA field centers.

Allen began her career at NASA in 1989, serving as a business manager for various NASA projects, including advanced space transportation programs and multiple microgravity projects. From 1986 to 1989, prior to joining NASA, Allen was a systems engineer at the US Army Missile and Space Intelligence Center in Huntsville, where she supported engineering studies to evaluate the effectiveness of foreign defense systems.

Throughout her 17-year NASA career, Allen has received numerous awards including the NASA Medal for Exceptional Achievement in 2001 for significant contributions to NASA’s space transportation programs; a NASA Administrator Certificate of Appreciation in 1997 for support in the development of the Microgravity Research Program Office; a Space Flight Honoree Award in 1993 for dedication to quality work and flight safety; several NASA Special Service Awards and numerous NASA Group Achievement Awards.

A native of Stockton, Ala., Allen earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering in 1985 from Auburn University in Auburn, Ala. She also completed a NASA Fellowship at the Simmons Graduate School of Management in Boston in 1997. Additionally, she has pursued graduate studies in engineering at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

Allen, and her husband Wilson, formerly of Dixon Springs, Tenn., reside in Huntsville with their two sons.