JILL R. MEYERS
About
BACKGROUND
Jill earned her pilot's license at the age of 17 and spent eight years on active duty in the U.S. Air Force at the start of her career. After transitioning out of the military, she spent more than 25 years at companies including Boeing, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman and Eclipse Aviation, supporting programs including the NATO, U.S. & U.K. Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS); Global Hawk; the Eclipse 500 Very Light Jet; and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Jill was an independent management consultant for six years, providing her expertise to aviation and aerospace companies and non-profit organizations around the world. She now holds a senior leadership position at an engineering services company supporting the aerospace, transportation and national security industries.
Jill holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, where she was elected to their Academy of Distinguished Alumni in 2021.
Jill has received many awards including the San Diego Chamber of Commerce “Women in Leadership” Award (2016) and the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics (AIAA) “Outstanding Enhancement of the Image of the Aerospace Profession” Award (2018). She was a finalist for San Diego Magazine’s “Woman of the Year” (2018) and was selected as one of the New Mexico Technology Council's “Women in Technology” honorees (2020).
Jill was named #3 on a list of the Top 62 Women in Aviation & Aerospace in the world to follow in 2021 on LinkedIn.
As an acknowledgement of her contributions to the industry, she was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society in 2019.
In 2022, AeroTime Hub announced for International Women's Day that Jill was the recipient of the AeroTime Aviation Achievement Award. That same year, the National Aeronautic Association (NAA) selected Jill as the recipient of the 2022 Katharine Wright Trophy.
AWARDS / HONORS
OUTREACH / SPEAKING
Jill has been inspiring the next generation for more than 20 years through mentoring, outreach and speaking engagements. She has been a keynote speaker at conferences, museums, schools, and STEM outreach events across the nation. Her presentations educate the audience about aviation and aerospace careers and address the importance of balance in organizations regarding the presence of women.
Mentoring is one of Jill's most important ways of inspiring the girls and women of all ages. In 2020, she hosted a panel on mentoring for the International Aviation Womens Association (IAWA). Here is a link to the recording where you can learn from Jill, retired NASA Astronaut Nicole Stott, former Society of Women Engineers President Jonna Gerken, and Harvard/Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Visualization Scientist Kimberly Arcand:
Mentoring in the World of STEM Careers.
Jill presents an inspriting keynote speech called "Shifting the Balance" which takes the audience on a ride through history, celebrating trailblazing women in the fields of aviation and aerospace around the world, sharing their stories, challenges and triumphs. She also includes a snapshot of the field today and touches on the many dynamic career paths that are possible through a solid STEM education, from flying airplanes to designing spacecraft, to building and fixing fighter jets, to managing a commercial aviation company. The presentation is designed more broadly to inspire the audience to connect with their dreams, to believe what’s possible, and to light the path forward, on any career path.
Jill is a long-time member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics (AIAA) and Women in Aviation International (WAI). She has been President of three WAI chapters around the country, most recently founding the first WAI chapter in New Mexico in 2019.
WAI Land of Enchantment Chapter
STEM EDUCATION
Jill is one of the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) role models featured on a STEM Trading Card!
This is a wonderful project from Science Delivered, a non-profit organization providing elementary science education and promoting equitable access to science for young learners.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Jill is also a "serious amateur" photographer and has been taking photographs of her surroundings since she was 12 years old.
You can see some of Jill's work on this Exposure photo story website:
