Debra L. Emmons

Dr. Debra L. Emmons is an Adjunct Professor for the Online Engineering Programs at the George Washington University in Washington, DC.  Dr. Emmons serves as Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at The Aerospace Corporation in El Segundo, California, where she leads the organization's technology strategy and manages a $60 million+ internal research and development portfolio that shapes support for government and commercial space missions. With more than 25 years of experience spanning systems engineering, program management, and communications systems, Emmons oversees four critical offices—eLab, xLab, Commercial Space Futures, and the new Solution Accelerator—while managing the company's Aerospace Technical Fellows program, leading teams of engineers and scientists who tackle the nation's most challenging space problems. She recently served as chairperson of the CTO Roundtable with federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs) and university affiliated research centers (UARCs), fostering collaboration across the defense research enterprise. Dr. Emmons holds bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering from Cornell University, an MBA from Imperial College University of London, and a Ph.D. in systems engineering from George Washington University.