Speaker for September 2026 Meeting
September 8, 2026
Please join us on September 8, 2026, for our monthly LAA General Membership and Board Meetings. We are honored to welcome Mr. Steve Gayle, Acting Associate Director at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia for a State of the Center presentation.
In his role as the Acting Associate Director, Mr. Gayle manages daily operations of Langley’s approximately $1 billion research and development center. He is responsible for aligning Langley’s institutional resources and infrastructure to meet NASA mission needs, optimizing both effectiveness and efficiency.
Mr. Gayle joined NASA Langley in 1987 as an engineering technician co-op in the center’s Fabrication Division, then graduating from the NASA Langley Engineering Technician Apprentice Program in 1993 as a journeyman machinist. In 2000, he received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Old Dominion University. He served as a mechanical engineer for ten years in the Mechanical Systems Branch within the Engineering Directorate working on numerous projects including Shuttle Return-to-Flight, Orion, and Mars Airplane.
Steve has served in numerous leadership positions at the center including branch head of the Mechanical Systems Branch; director of the Workforce Office in the Office of Human Capital; director of the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity; and chief operating officer, deputy director, and acting director for the Center’s Engineering Directorate. He most recently served as the director for Center Operations Directorate, overseeing facilities maintenance and operations related services, logistics services, security services, environmental management, and export control administration.
