{"59995":{"#nid":"59995","#data":{"type":"news","title":"NASA Names Georgia Tech Professor to New Shuttle Safety Advisory Panel","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.isye.gatech.edu\/faculty-staff\/profile.php?id=1421\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EAugustine Esogbue\u003C\/a\u003E, a professor in Georgia Tech\u0027s School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, is among nine safety, management and engineering experts tapped by NASA to lead its Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP). All former members of the panel resigned in September after being criticized by Columbia Shuttle investigators and members of Congress for being ineffective.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAugustine Esogbue is a professor in Georgia Tech\u0027s School of Industrial and Systems Engineering and director of the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.isye.gatech.edu\/iscl\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EIntelligent Systems \u0026amp; Controls Laboratory\u003C\/a\u003E.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe new panel \u0026#8212; announced Tuesday in an effort to provide stronger, more focused oversight on safety assessment \u0026#8212; is expected to play an important role in the ongoing safety assessment and review of the Space Shuttle program as it prepares to return to flight. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EEsogbue, who also serves at the director of the Intelligent Systems \u0026amp; Controls Laboratory at Georgia Tech, is one of only two members selected to the panel who hold academic appointments. The rest were selected from the military and private industry. The panel was chartered by Congress in 1967, after the tragic fire aboard Apollo 1, to act as an independent body advising NASA on the safety of operations, facilities, and personnel. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026quot;The Columbia Accident Investigation Board report clearly indicated we need to get back to basics with our safety assessment,\u0026quot; NASA Administrator Sean O\u0027Keefe said in a written statement. \u0026quot;By recommitting ourselves to the original concept for the ASAP, we believe a stronger, more focused advisory panel will benefit the entire agency well beyond our Return to Flight efforts.\u0026quot;\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn naming the members, NASA also announced the new panel will begin with a new charter \u0026#8212; the original charter from 1967, signed by then-NASA Administrator James E. Webb. According to NASA, the new provisions help assure an independent, long-term oversight of the agency\u0027s safety policies and programs. Some of the revisions include: \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026#8212; The new ASAP will report quarterly instead of annually;\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u0026#8212; The term for new members is two years, extendable to a maximum of six years in order to stagger terms of service and ensure a fresh perspective at regular intervals;\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u0026#8212; The new ASAP focuses on NASA\u0027s safety and quality systems. ASAP will focus on industrial and systems safety, risk management, trend analysis and the management of these activities. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe new panel will have the opportunity to develop its agenda in concert with the oversight findings of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board, according to NASA. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026quot;By drawing on and asking the technical support of the NASA Engineering and Safety Center, the panel will have a deep capacity to conduct comprehensive, independent, external oversight of our safety systems, operations and culture,\u0026quot; O\u0027Keefe said. \u0026quot;We welcome the members\u0027 active participation in our efforts to emerge from the Columbia tragedy a smarter, stronger and safer agency dedicated to exploration.\u0026quot;\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EEsogbue has been a professor at Georgia Tech since 1972. In 1976, he founded Georgia Tech\u0027s chapter of NSBE - the National Society of Black Engineers and currently serves as the chapter\u0027s faculty advisor. His research interests include dynamic programming, fuzzy sets, decision making and control in a fuzzy environment, and operations research with applications to socio-technical systems such as health care, water resource management and disaster control planning. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs director of the Intelligent Systems and Controls Laboratory, he is currently investigating a hybrid approach to intelligent control via fuzzy sets, neural networks, and reinforcement learning theories, as well as its application to various large-scale, nonlinear and uncertain dynamical systems. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHere is a list of the new panel members: \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\nRear Admiral Walt Cantrell, USN (Ret)\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer Commander, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nMember, NASA Stafford-Covey Return to Flight Task Group\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer NASA Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel member \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EVice Admiral Joe Dyer, USN (Ret)\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer Commander, Naval Air Systems Command\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nGeneral Manager, Military Systems Division, iRobot Corporation \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAugustine Esogbue, Ph.D.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nProfessor and Director, Intelligent Systems \u0026amp; Controls Laboratory,\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nSchool of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Georgia Tech\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMajor General Rusty Gideon, USAF (Ret)\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer Commander, U.S. Air Force Safety Center, and USAF Chief of\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nSafety\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer Director of Operations, Headquarters Air Force Materiel Command\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer Commander, Foreign Aerospace Science and Technology Center \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EDeborah Grubbe\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nDuPont Corporate Director \u0026amp;#8212 Safety and Health\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nMember, National Academy of Sciences\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer consultant, Columbia Accident Investigation Board \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ERosemary O\u0027Leary, J.D., Ph.D.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nProfessor of Public Administration and Political Science, Maxwell School\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nof Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University, New York\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nMember, NASA Stafford-Covey Return to Flight Task Group \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJohn Marshall\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nDelta Airlines, Vice President Corporate Safety and Compliance, Atlanta\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nCo-chair, Commercial Aviation Safety Team\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nBoard member, National Defense Transportation Association \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ESteve Wallace\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nDirector, Office of Accident Investigation, Federal Aviation Administration\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFAA representative to National Transportation Safety Board\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer Columbia Accident Investigation Board member \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ERick Williams\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nCorporate Safety Director, Alcoa, New York\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nFormer Director, Human Resources, Alcoa Primary Metals, Knoxville,\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nTenn. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBrigadier General Joseph Smith, USA \u0026#8212; Ex-Officio Member\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nDirector, U.S. Army Safety Center, Fort Rucker, Ala.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ERedistributed from Georgia Tech\u0027s Institute Communications and Public Affairs.\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":"","uid":"27279","created_gmt":"2003-11-19 01:00:00","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:07:08","author":"Barbara Christopher","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2003-11-19T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2003-11-19T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"1242","name":"School of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISYE)"}],"categories":[{"id":"145","name":"Engineering"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cstrong\u003EBarbara Christopher\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EIndustrial and Systems Engineering\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.gatech.edu\/contact\/index.html?id=bt3\u0022\u003EContact Barbara Christopher\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E404.385.3102\u003C\/strong\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["bchristopher@isye.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}