Gebhardt Distinguished Lecture

"Challenges and Opportunities in National Security for Aerospace Engineering"

featuring

Laura McGill

(Director, Sandia National Laboratories)

Thursday, September 24
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Weber, CoVE

About the Seminar:

In this lecture, Laura McGill will present the history of Sandia National Laboratories, and ongoing work to ‘…render exceptional service in the national interest.’  She will cover the role of the National Laboratories in advancing science and technology, with an emphasis on aerospace engineering challenges in national security and Sandia National Laboratories’ progress in hypersonic systems.  She will highlight the importance of systems integration to provide deterrence in today’s complex geopolitical environment. 

About the Speaker:

As the Director of Sandia National Laboratories, Laura McGill provides leadership
and management direction for the safe and secure execution of all Sandia
missions.

Before her appointment as Labs Director on May 1, 2025, Laura served as the
Deputy Laboratories Director for Nuclear Deterrence and Chief Technology
Officer since January 2021. In that role, she was responsible for ensuring the
safety, security, reliability, effectiveness and modernization of the U.S. nuclear
stockpile. She guided Sandia’s contributions to nuclear weapon systems
engineering, development and surveillance. As Chief Technology Officer, she led
strategic initiatives and the development of emerging technologies, positioning
Sandia to meet future national security challenges.

Laura has worked in the defense industry for more than four decades.
Before joining Sandia, Laura served as deputy vice president of engineering at
Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business with 30,000
employees, including 15,000 engineers and scientists. She oversaw development
and operational support for advanced weapons systems for the Department of
Defense.

Before that, she was vice president of engineering for Raytheon Missile
Systems, leading an organization of 7,800 engineers and scientists developing
and producing weapons for the U.S. military and Department of Defense. She
was responsible for systems performance, technical execution, test and flight
operations, technology investment, engineering career development and capital
investments.

Prior to vice president, Laura was chief engineer for the $2 billion Air Warfare
Systems program portfolio, which included Tomahawk cruise missiles, air-to-air
combat systems and precision strike weapons.

In 2019, Laura was inducted into the National Academy of Engineering. She is also
a Lifetime Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and
served as its president from 2022 to 2024. She has taught numerous graduate
courses in systems engineering as an adjunct faculty member at Johns Hopkins
University Whiting School of Engineering.

Laura holds a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering
from the University of Washington and a master’s degree in aerospace systems
from West Coast University.