Alumni Spotlight: Mr. Chris Jackson
Chris Jackson, Van High School Class of 2004
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MR. JACKSON
Chris Jackson followed his After High School Comes College dream at Rice University where he majored in Mechanical Engineering. Once he received his bachelor’s degree, he joined L-3 Harris as a mechanical designer working in the commercial aircraft modification division. His projects as a designer included the Marine One presidential helicopter, several Boeing wide-body aircraft including the 777 Dreamliner, and obtaining a patent for an aircraft elevator. While working at L-3 Harris, Mr. Jackson transitioned to the role of structural analyst and furthered his education by obtaining a master’s degree in Systems Engineering from the Stevens Institute of Technology.
After two years as a structural analyst, he accepted an opportunity to work for Lockheed Martin on NASA’s Multipurpose Crew Vehicle, more commonly known as the Orion spacecraft. He began his work for the Landing and Recovery Systems group on the Parachute Test Vehicle team and then moved on to tasks dealing with flight hardware. Currently, Mr. Jackson is the lead structural analyst for the Environmental Controls and Life Support System team. The first two Orion vehicles of NASA’s Artemis program will participate in demonstration flights that will travel around the moon. The first vehicle has been built and is expected to launch next year, and the second, which will carry astronauts, is currently being built at Kennedy Space Center.
HOW DID VAN ISD HELP PREPARE YOU FOR YOUR FUTURE?
Mr. Jackson says, “At Van High School, many of my teachers such as Ms. Suzanne Braly, Mrs. Donna Rainwater, Mrs. Leslie Bunt, and Mr. Mike Brown, just to name a few, as well as many others, taught critical thinking skills which have stayed with me and facilitated my success in the workplace. I participated in Speech and Debate which greatly enabled me to develop soft skills which can be quite vital in my line of work. Without a doubt, my math instruction set the foundation that allowed me to pursue a career working on complex engineering machines including ones that will directly impact human exploration into the solar system.”
WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR CURRENT STUDENTS?
“Van High School is a beginning, not an end. With footprints on the moon and new ones soon to be added, the sky is no longer the limit,” said Mr. Jackson.
Mr. Jackson is definitely doing amazing work and we are proud to call him a Vandal!
#WeAreVan #Alumni
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