Flying High and Cutting through the Glass Ceiling
From sitting on the lap of Einstein as a child to making significant advances in aerospace and materials engineering as an adult, Pamela Kay Strong has done it all.
Published August 1, 2004
By Dan Van Atta
Academy Contributor
“Many, many times I’ve been the only woman in the room,” commented Pamela Kay Strong, a member of The New York Academy of Sciences (the Academy) from Huntington Beach, Calif. Her distinguished career in science and engineering was recently recognized when she was named a Fellow of the Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering (SAMPE). “I think it’s made me a stronger person.”
A chemist and engineer whose career spans more than 30 years in the aerospace industry – including technical leadership positions at Hughes Aircraft Co., General Electric Co., Northrop Corp. and, since 1987, The Boeing Co. – Dr. Strong is just the third female among the 93 individuals to be so honored by SAMPE.
Strong’s identification with science began as a young child. Her father, W. T. Strong, worked in the missile and space division of Goodyear at Holloman Air Force Base and often hosted visiting scientists, who were introduced to her as “uncle” or “aunt” in the family home. “I was an aerospace brat,” Strong said with a chuckle during a recent interview. She added that she can recall sitting on Albert Einstein’s lap and, at age 5, building a wooden rocket with the help of Wernher von Braun.
Shooting for the Stars
She then reiterated an anecdote that was published earlier this year in S&T, the science and technology newsletter of her alma mater, Bryn Mawr College. When “Uncle Wernher” asked her how the launch of her wooden rocket had gone, she responded: “It didn’t go to the moon.” Strong said he then asked, “Well, did you get it off the ground?”
Her reply was, “Yes, it went as high as a tree.” To that response von Braun retorted: “Then it was a success! I can’t get mine off the ground.”
Strong’s interest in science had also taken off. In 1972 she earned a BS in organic chemistry from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, and two years later her MS and PhD equivalent, also in organic chemistry, from Bryn Mawr. She soon followed in her father’s footsteps, entering the male-dominated aircraft industry.
“In the beginning it was ‘what’s this woman doing here?’” Strong recalled. “But after six months it became come out and join us – in the softball game or whatever it was they were doing. I’ve always tried to get along, and I quickly became one of the boys.”
At the same time, she was equally committed to “doing the best possible job that you can.” At GE in the mid-1980s she was an important member of the team that established the parameters needed to consistently manufacture commercial parts from polyimide (PMR-15) and other aircraft structural composites – an advance that led to significant improvements in aircraft performance.
Continue Fighting the Glass Ceiling
Strong’s title is currently “Principal Engineer/Scientist 5/Technical Specialist” in the Materials and Process Engineering Department of Boeing’s Integrated Defense Systems business unit in Long Beach. She and her team provide technical and design support for nonmetallic manufacturing processes and material parameters used in aircraft, rockets and the B-1B Bomber. In receiving the SAMPE recognition, she was cited for her contributions to the advancement of such diverse material technologies as composites, low observables and ablative materials.
“It’s unfortunate that women have to work 10 times as hard as men,” Strong said, then displayed her tongue-in-cheek sense of humor, “but it’s good that it’s so easy for us to do that.”
Her advice to young women seeking a career in science and engineering is much the same as for those already engaged in technical careers. “Find a mentor as fast as you can and hang on for dear life – don’t burn any bridges along your way.”
“And continue fighting the glass ceiling,” Strong concluded, “but don’t forget to bring your diamond glass cutting etcher with you.”
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