2009 Women of Color Special Recognition Honorees
Cynthia J. Banks
Research Biologist
US Army Engineer Research and Development Center
BSc – biology/environmental science, Jackson State University
MSc – hazardous material management, Jackson State University
Cynthia Banks worked for the Corps’ engineering and scientifi c R&D organization from 1995 to 2000, while
employed with the federal student temporary employment program. Three years later, she joined ERDC’s en-
vironmental risk assessment branch as a research biologist, coming on as a distinguished scholastic achieve-
ment (DSA) appointment. DSA positions are for eminently qualifi ed candidates possessing education and/or experience, with a
grade point average of 3.5 or better (on a 4.0 scale) for graduate level courses in the fi eld of study required for the occupation.
Banks is principal investigator in the areas of wetland and coastal ecology, environmental engineering, decision analysis, and eco-
toxicology. She has worked on projects such as the development and application of risk and decision analysis for the Corps’ post-
Katrina planning studies, including the Louisiana Coastal Protection, as well as the Restoration and Mississippi Coastal Improve-
ments programs, which together total $50 million in funding. Her current laboratory work is focused on cutting-edge research of
the effects of engineered nano-particles.
Banks was awarded the 2008 Department of the Army Achievement Medal for Civilian Service for facilitating collaborations with
historically black colleges and universities and assisting in the establishment of a cooperative R&D agreement with Tennessee State
University. Recently, she presented an overview of the Waterways Experiment Station—headquarters for the ERDC, to a 9th-grade
Mississippi studies class as part of her efforts to increase interest in STEM careers.
Irma C. Burden Cynthia C. Calhoun
Acting Command Deputy EEO/Diversity Officer Chief, Program and Project Assurance
Naval Surface Warfare Center, Panama City Division Division
Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) NASA John H. Glenn Research Center
BSc - human services and management, Alabama BSc - electrical and computer engineering,
State University Ohio University
MSc - counseling and psychology, Troy University, MSc - information systems management,
Alabama Duquesne University
Irma Burden has demonstrated efforts to pro- When America rockets a new gen-
mote equal employment within government and her commu- eration of explorers to the moon
nity. As deputy EEO/diversity offi cer, she took the initiative to aboard the Orion Crew Exploration
expand the Naval Surface Warfare Center’s black employment Vehicle, its service module will be
program into the African American Leadership Council. As the powerhouse that fuels and propels the spacecraft, as well
founding president, Burden instituted an award for recogni- as the storehouse for air and water that the astronauts use
tion of African Americans in pioneering careers at the Naval during their space travels.
Surface Warfare Center, and she also implemented a process
Calhoun manages 54 employees, who support the build of
for ensuring diversity in senior-level positions at the Naval Sea
Orion’s service module. Her staff also implements safety, reli-
Systems Command.
ability, and quality assurance for the Glenn Center’s contribu-
Burden was successful in building a campaign targeting dis- tions to the Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle project. Within NASA’s
crimination complaints. Over a three-year period, her efforts Constellation programs, Ares I is the vehicle that will launch
yielded a 70-percent reduction in EEO complaints. Since 1997, the crew aboard Orion to low-Earth orbit on its journey to the
she has written more than twenty articles promoting equality International Space Station, the Moon and eventually Mars.
of opportunity and the value of human service.
Throughout her career, Calhoun has been active in outreach
Burden’s community-service milestones include acquisition of activities. Supporting NASA Glenn’s summer internship
properties in blighted areas for re-development, construction program, she has served as a mentor to high-school seniors
of affordable housing for low- and middle-income families, and NASA Scholar minority-college female students. Calhoun
and membership in the US Business Leaders Network (BLN), served as the 2005-7 president of the Cleveland chapter of
the national business organization of more than 5,000 em- the National Technical Association, one of the oldest minority
ployers promoting the business imperative of including people technical associations in the United States. She began her ca-
with disabilities in the workforce. reer as an electronics engineer with the Air Force in 1988, and
joined NASA in 1996 as a project manager. Recently, Calhoun
Burden also is a Sunday school teacher and youth advisor. She
shared in providing systems-engineering implementation of
mentors middle and high-school students, encouraging young
“Best Practices” to a team from the Marshall Flight Center.
women in alternative high schools to stay and earn their diplo-
mas or at least get GED certifi cation.
48 WOMENOFCOLOR | FALL 2009 www.womenofcolor.net
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