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<\/a><\/figure>“I’m responsible for managing safety and quality teams for about 13 customers,” Senegal said, noting that these customers include the Orion and Gateway Programs, the Human Landing System, and the Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility Program. Senegal’s teams work at several levels to implement agency, program, and center SMA requirements, in addition to assisting with monitoring Johnson\u2019s Quality Management System to identify concerns for SMA leadership.<\/p>\n
Some teams operate at the program level, helping to write program requirements, establishing assurance programs, and identifying and characterizing risk. Other teams work on a developmental level and focus on ensuring that a piece of hardware, software, and other components meet requirements and are safe. One team is dedicated to extravehicular activity, or EVA, operations, making sure that both crew members and equipment are prepared for safe and successful spacewalks. Senegal’s division is also responsible for calibration, safety, and quality for government-furnished equipment at Johnson, procurement quality, and the Receiving, Inspection and Test Facility.<\/p>\n
“This division is probably the most diverse at Johnson because we do a multitude of things and have a multitude of disciplines,” Senegal said. “That’s why I enjoy it.”<\/p>\n
Senegal was introduced to quality management as a manufacturing engineer for General Motors, where she worked for seven years before becoming a NASA contractor. She said it was always her goal to work at NASA, but there were no opportunities available at Johnson when she graduated from Prairie View A&M University with a degree in electrical and electronics engineering. “I just kept applying to anything that had to do with NASA, and then SAIC hired me,” she said. SAIC, or Science Applications International Corp., is a subcontractor of NASA.<\/p>\n
Senegal has worked at Johnson for 28 years, becoming a civil servant in 2004. In that time, she has been involved in the development and implementation of space and life science experiments, the Human Research Facility, and crew exercise hardware, among other projects. She said her most memorable experience was working to transition crew health equipment from the Space Shuttle Program to the International Space Station. Senegal explained that while the hardware worked well on shuttle missions, it had to be redesigned to support longer missions and larger crews on station. She was not responsible for the redesign, but she had to ensure the equipment worked and was safe. “I really enjoyed that because it was a challenge, and you had all of these great ideas coming together from engineers, doctors, and the crew,” she said. “We became a strong, close team. Everyone was there trying to achieve the same goal.”<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/figure>Her career in SMA has touched nearly every program at Johnson and some agency-level initiatives. Along the way, she has progressed from group lead to branch chief, deputy division chief, and now division chief\u2014a role she calls her most challenging yet.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs deputy, you manage parts of the business. As chief, you own it all\u2014mission outcomes, safety posture, budget, culture, and external optics,\u201d Senegal explains. Decisions once offered as advice now carry her endorsement and reputation. The shift means setting direction, allocating resources, and making tough calls, even when every request feels mission-critical. She also shapes how the division recruits, rotates, and grows talent, while tackling challenges like refreshing skill sets and building succession depth in critical disciplines.<\/p>\n
In today\u2019s evolving risk environment, Senegal must balance mission risk with project, program, and agency priorities, while keeping programs on schedule. \u201cThe chief\u2019s message has to be clear, repeatable, and behavior-shaping,\u201d she says. Building rhythms like staff syncs and risk reviews keeps the team aligned amid competing agendas.<\/p>\n
Looking ahead, Senegal sees the team focusing on supporting NASA\u2019s acquisition strategy and improving the speed and quality of organizational decision-making. \u201cWe need to define when issues go to the chief, deputy, or branch chiefs\u2014and protect strategic time by saying \u2018no\u2019 when \u2018yes\u2019 isn\u2019t the right answer.\u201d Her leadership philosophy centers on connection: \u201cKnow your team\u2019s strengths and care about them\u2014even small gestures matter,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen people know you care, it makes coming to work easier.\u201d<\/p>\n