玛丽亚·里贾纳高中

2023年9月

• 玛丽亚·里贾纳高中 presents the 2023年9月 Spotlight, 土地肥沃的W. 普赖尔62

  Looking back on her distinguished career, notably as a trailblazing aeronautical engineer who made her mark in what was then a male-dominated field, 土地肥沃的W. 普赖尔(62届), says: “I have to admit that Maria Regina is probably the major reason that I was as successful as I was.”
  Although she was “not at all interested in many of the subjects we had to study,” the young student recognized that “science was where it was at, 尤其是物理. 在我父母和修女之间, there was sufficient prodding of me to make decent grades and I managed to get through New York University and my first job. 剩下的就是历史了."
  And what a remarkable career it was indeed, starting shortly after Pryor earned her B.S. Degree in Aeronautical Engineering from NYU in 1966. She was hired by Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, one of the leading manufacturers of helicopters for civilian and military uses. 只有很短的一段时间, she had the distinction of being the only female engineer at Sikorsky, focused on the performance and handling qualities of the latest generation of Sikorsky helicopters.
  Her experience at Sikorsky caught the attention of General Electric Aircraft Engines (GEAE) which in 1974 “made me an offer that was hard to refuse.” The opportunity was to serve as a flight test engineer (in customer service) at Edwards 空军 Base (EAFB) on the A-10 aircraft, 第一个U.S. 空军 plane specifically designed for close air support of troops on the ground.
  Her responsibilities led to assignments throughout the U.S. and Europe including the Paris Air Show and the Air Tattoo (Mildenhall Air Base in the UK). She was only the second woman in GE’s field service and the first with an engineering degree. Pryor worked her way up to manager of first shift development engine testing after serving as a development test engineer at EAFB. Meanwhile, Pryor continued her education, earning an M.S. Degree in Business Management for the University of La Verne.
  后GEAE, Pryor joined McDonnell-Douglas Aircraft to work on the C-17, 大型军用运输机, 配备普拉特 & Whitney engines, that was being built for the U.S. 空军. She led a group tasked with qualifying the propulsion system (thrust reverser system, 电气系统, hydraulic system and the engine control system) which comprised state-of-the-art technologies including a Full Authority Digital Control system which included control of the thrust reverser operation.
  She then joined Rolls-Royce Corporation where she again specialized in engine design and development. She spent three months in San Jose dos Campos, Brazil supporting the first engine installation on the EMB-145 civilian aircraft for Embraer, 巴西航空航天公司.
  In 1998, she left the aerospace field and returned to New York where for the next 10 years, she was an assistant construction manager in both commercial and residential construction. She attributes the 2008 market “crash” with an opportunity to return to Rolls-Royce as a senior project engineer on a military program and subsequently to support a large turbofan engine program in Derby, 联合王国. She spent the next two years traveling around England, 威尔士, 苏格兰, 欧洲大陆(丹麦), 瑞典, 芬兰, 意大利, 希腊)和北非. The world traveler had already been to France, Germany and the Netherlands during her assignments and, 独自一人, had managed to see some of Belgium and Switzerland as well as Australia and South Korea.
  Pryor retired in 2015 and relocated to northern Nevada. 但, she continued to make her mark as a member of the Soroptimist International – Truckee Meadows chapter, Society of Women Engineers and as a volunteer with Sierra Nevada Journeys. 不足为奇的是, the insatiable curiosity in science she discovered as a Maria Regina student motivated her to inspire the next generation of scientists, perhaps as successful aeronautic engineers like herself by working at these three organizations to bring STEM (Science, 技术, Engineering and Mathematics) to elementary and secondary school students via hands-on learning projects. Pryor has also volunteered with FIRST Robotics, an international non-profit that encourages students to get involved with robots, designing and competing with other students.
  Her significant contributions have been recognized, notably by Sierra Nevada Journeys which nominated her for the 2016 Governor’s Point of Light Award for Northern Nevada non-profits. 她很自豪能进入决赛, continuing in Maria Regina’s proud tradition of alumnae making a difference not only in their careers but in their communities. She hopes this Spotlight will “be useful in encouraging young women to extend themselves and really step outside the boxes.”