Member since November 2021
Space and Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) – 2021 Promise Award Winner, Sydney Hamilton, has been featured on CBS’ Mission Unstoppable, in Marie Claire Magazine, on NPR’s Wow in the World, and across The Boeing Company for her innovative contributions to the aerospace industry. Sydney is an 2019-2021 IF/THEN Ambassador for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) to inspire youth to pursue STEM fields. IF/THEN’s mission is to inspire young girls, especially of color, to be exposed to all of the amazing opportunities in STEM. If she can see it, then she can be it.
Sydney is an Aerospace Structures Stress Manager at Boeing in Long Beach, CA. She provides leadership for a team of incredible structural analysis engineers who support multiple programs in satellites, commercial aircrafts, airplane repairs, and aircraft modifications. Prior to that, she was Mechanical Design Engineer leading a cross-functional team developing Satellite Reflectors that redirect radio frequencies (like your GPS!) to desired areas. Throughout Sydney’s career, she has had the opportunity to design 3D-printed satellite parts, deliver structural repairs to Boeing’s fleet of 767 and 777 airplanes, as well as analyze for the 777X Folding Wing-Tip – the first commercial airplane with mechanical folding wings! Her career journey has prepared her well for her leadership role.
As a passionate advocate for recognizing the power within diversity, Sydney founded Boeing Generations 2 Generations SoCal employee resource group dedicated to improving workplace culture across the company’s rich, multi-generational talent pool. Sydney brings out her passion for STEM education through her partnership with the non-profit organization, Dramatic Results. Serving as President on the Board of Directors, Sydney has championed the success of extracurricular programs designed to bring STEM through Art (STEAM) into the hands of underserved youth.
Sydney received dual degrees in Mathematics and Aerospace Engineering from Spelman College and the University of Michigan, respectively. She also studied Nuclear Engineering while abroad in Xiamen, Fujian, China. Outside of work, Sydney can be found scuba diving, puzzling or cooking (and especially eating) new cuisines with friends.
I enjoy motivational speeches to uplift and encourage others like in my TEDx talk "How to Use Your VOICE to Accomplish Your Goals. I enjoyed being the keynote speaking for Young Women in STEM conference speaking on ways not to hold yourself back or count yourself out. I talk about my STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) journey. I also like talking about diversity and inclusion. I am extremely versatile in my topics: anything aerospace or general STEM-related, encouraging/motivational, getting started on social media, interactive workshops for kids (STEM) and for adults (Storytelling coach) - you have come to the right place. My passion is the people.
When I was in high school I took an aptitude test, just like many of us did. I can remember being so excited to see what my world of possibilities might be. The results were in. Engineer... and I could not have been more relieved. Excited, I told my teachers about it. I wanted into my class and my English teacher was giving us all advice. I confidently told him that I was going to be an engineer and I can remember those piercing words... "isn't that too hard for someone like you?" Immediately, I was crushed - is this too hard for me? As those words replayed in my mind, I felt defeated over the next couple of days. My orchestra teacher pulled me aside and asked me what was wrong. I replayed the story to her. She looked at me and smirked. Then simply asked, "since when do you listen to anyone?" I laughed and thought about it. She was right - I have always forged my own path so why stop now?
My earliest memory of being interested in STEM was when I was a little girl, I would stand outside and try to take off – literally. I had my blanket tied around my neck in true superheroine fashion. I was young enough that I had no boundaries on my possibilities of what I couldn’t do or a clear understanding of human physical limitations either. Haha! Not once did my parents tell me that I could not fly. So, it makes sense that I became an aerospace engineer — flying, just a little differently than I originally imagined.
When I was in high school I took an aptitude test, just like many of us did. I can remember being so excited to see what my world of possibilities might be. The results were in. Engineer... and I could not have been more relieved. Excited, I told my teachers about it. I wanted into my class and my English teacher was giving us all advice. I confidently told him that I was going to be an engineer and I can remember those piercing words... "isn't that too hard for someone like you?" Immediately, I was crushed - is this too hard for me? As those words replayed in my mind, I felt defeated over the next couple of days. My orchestra teacher pulled me aside and asked me what was wrong. I replayed the story to her. She looked at me and smirked. Then simply asked, "since when do you listen to anyone?" I laughed and thought about it. She was right - I have always forged my own path so why stop now?
My earliest memory of being interested in STEM was when I was a little girl, I would stand outside and try to take off – literally. I had my blanket tied around my neck in true superheroine fashion. I was young enough that I had no boundaries on my possibilities of what I couldn’t do or a clear understanding of human physical limitations either. Haha! Not once did my parents tell me that I could not fly. So, it makes sense that I became an aerospace engineer — flying, just a little differently than I originally imagined.
