Dr. Renee K. Horton

Hometown

Baton Rouge

What I do

“I am the NASA Airworthiness deputy for the EPFD, which is the Electrified Powertrain Flight Demonstrator Project, at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. I am also the founder of Unapologetically Being Inc., which is a nonprofit here.”

Why I moved away

“I graduated from McKinley High School in Baton Rouge, started college and was in the Air Force, ROTC. I found out that I was hearing-impaired at 17; it had gone undiagnosed most of my time in school. During that time, I ended up dropping out of college, getting pregnant, and marrying my then-sweetheart. After I had my daughter. I decided I needed to go back to college and get life back together. I went back to LSU, finished with a B.S. in electrical engineering and a minor in math, then started a master's in physics. I then moved to the University of Alabama and started working on my Ph.D., becoming the first African-American to finish the program and receiving a Ph.D. in material science with a concentration in physics.”

Why I moved back

“My first job was with NASA in Huntsville, Alabama, and they were sending me back to the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans for a project that I was on. I would go back every six weeks or so, and I would stay for about two weeks, then I'd go back to Alabama. I was dreadfully homesick, and I realized then that Louisiana was calling me in a different kind of way. Something in the soil – maybe my ancestors, maybe the soul of the city – was always, constantly calling me. Being called to service, I really wanted to be in my state, so that I was making the kind of impact my grandkids could be proud of and want to call Louisiana home as well. I pleaded with my job to figure out a way to get me back and a position ended up opening up. I applied, was overly qualified for it, took a pay cut, and came back home.”