Is there — was there — life on Mars? What did the first stars and galaxies that formed in the Universe look like? When will humans go back to the moon? One of the people at NASA hoping to find the answers to these age-old questions is Marcellus Proctor.
As the Assistant Chief of Operations in the Electrical Engineering Division at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in Greenbelt, Md., Marcellus leads the operational support to over 200 engineers, technicians, and managers. The mission of the Electrical Engineering Division is to provide end-to-end electrical engineering capabilities, enabling NASA’s science observations from space, utilizing instruments, sub-orbital platforms, and observatories. Marcellus also plans and directs the division’s support services contract, valuing at $493 million, providing the study, design, development, fabrication, integration, testing, and operations of space flight, airborne, and ground systems.
AISES has been fortunate to count Marcellus as a friend and supporter for close to 15 years. He brings a quiet yet passionate strength to everything he undertakes. Marcellus has interacted with hundreds of AISES students, partners, staff, and board members in his role on the Government Relations Council, which strengthens collaboration between agencies and AISES. In coordination with NASA’s Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) for American Indian and Alaska Native Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Engagement program Marcellus does everything he can to provide opportunities and resources to the next generation of future scientists and engineers, and he is adept at opening doors, breaking down barriers, and attracting people to the AISES mission.
A tireless AISES cheerleader, Marcellus excels at enlisting people to help Native students and professionals who are dreaming of success in their chosen STEM fields. “It’s okay to dream,” he believes. “It’s okay to aspire to be great where anything is possible.” Besides creating opportunities for AISES students, Marcellus has deep experience coaching individuals to grow as professionals. He was the chair of the NASA/GSFC Native American Advisory Committee from 2007 to 2011 and is a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). In addition to being an AISES Sequoyah Fellow, he is a lifetime member of the Society of American Indian Government Employees and the National Society of Black Engineers.
Marcellus has a BS degree in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park, and an MS in electrical engineering from Johns Hopkins University. An enrolled member of the Piscataway-Conoy Nation, Marcellus lives close to his Indigenous community in southern Maryland.
In February 2021 the Perseverance rover, which launched July 30, 2020, is expected to land in Mars’ Jezero Crater and begin its search for evidence of the planet’s ancient environmental history. So, the next time you hear about the Mars mission, James Webb Space Telescope, or the Artemis program give an appreciative nod to Marcellus Proctor, who is opening doors for AISES members here on Earth while creating exciting opportunities for the exploration in space.
To read more about other Sequoyah Fellow Profiles in Leadership, visit https://www.aises.org/profiles-in-leadership.
