Kendra Cook is the Chair of the IEEE Aerospace Conference and a Space System Security Subject Matter Expert at SAIC, supporting NASA in shaping the future of how the U.S. does space system security. Prior to her current role, she spent nine years at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), serving in multiple engineering positions, most recently as a System Security Engineer with the Mission Protection Office and as the Lead Systems Engineer on the Europa Clipper operations team. Her career also includes 15 years supporting various satellite and technology development programs and seven years as an Officer in the United States Air Force.

Kendra holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Boston University and dual M.S. degrees in Astronautical Engineering and Computer Engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology. She is also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified U.S. Export Compliance Officer (CUSECO), and Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH).
In addition to her technical and leadership roles, Kendra is a proud parent of four children who have been active participants in the Junior Science and Engineering Conference since first grade. Her unique perspective—as both a conference leader and parent—has helped guide the development of a truly family-friendly, multigenerational event that inspires young minds while engaging professional engineers.