America Makes Leadership Attend Welcome Reception for UTEP’s New President

America Makes leadership attended a welcoming reception on September 5, 2019, for the new president of The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), Heather Wilson, Ph.D., hosted by UTEP’s Chancellor James B. Milliken at the Larry K. Durham Sports Center.

UTEP, a long-standing member of America Makes since 2012, is also the home of the Institute’s first Satellite Center, established in 2015, at UTEP’s W.M. Keck Center for 3D Innovation. Dr. Wilson’s appointment as UTEP’s new president was effective as of August 15.

In attendance at the reception from America Makes and NCDMM were John Wilczynski, America Makes executive director; Erin O'Donnell, America Makes director of Partnerships and Community Relations; Gary Fleegle, America Makes acting director of Operations and NCDMM VP & COO; and Randy Gilmore, America Makes Acting Technology Director and NCDMM VP & CTO.

“On behalf of all of us from America Makes, we were honored by Chancellor Milliken’s invitation to attend last evening’s reception for Dr. Wilson,” says Wilczynski. “It was a pleasure to meet Dr. Wilson, who exhibits steely enthusiasm and commitment to ensure access to an exceptional education is within reach of all. Her diverse career and educational background will serve the students and faculty of UTEP well as she leads them to thrive and succeed in this twenty-first century world.”

Before returning to academia, Dr. Wilson formerly served for two years as the 24th Secretary of the Air Force. She was responsible for the affairs of the Department of the Air Force, including the organizing, training and equipping, and providing for the welfare of 685,000 active-duty, Guard, Reserve and civilian forces, as well as their families. Dr. Wilson oversaw the Air Force’s annual budget of more than $138 billion and directed strategy and policy development, risk management, weapons acquisition, technology investments and human resource management across a global enterprise.

Dr. Wilson has more than 35 years of professional experience in a range of leadership and management roles in the military, higher education, government and private industry. Previously, Dr. Wilson was president of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, an engineering and science research university in Rapid City, SD, and represented New Mexico in the U.S. Congress for 10 years.

Additionally, Dr. Wilson has worked in the private sector, serving as a senior advisor to the defense and scientific industry and as president of Keystone International, Inc., a company she founded that conducted business development and program planning work.

She also served in the military as an Air Force officer from 1982 to 1989. Dr. Wilson graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in the third class to include women, and earned her master’s and doctorate degrees as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University in England.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.