NASA strategist and virtual reality pioneer joins UHCL leadership

May 1, 2019

Dear Faculty and Staff:

I am pleased to announce that Evelyn C. Miralles — internationally recognized virtual reality pioneer, NASA technology strategist and UHCL alumna — begins a new career today as our associate vice president for Strategic Information Initiatives & Technology.

In her new role, Ms. Miralles will serve as chief strategist for the engagement of educational programs and external partners. She will identify high-value technologies that support state-of-the-art teaching/learning models, as well as provide leadership and vision in the integrative area of science, innovation and technology.

Among other duties, she will collaborate with deans regarding faculty development opportunities; recommend relevant institutional, divisional, departmental and programmatic objectives; and partner with each college to conduct regular reviews of program curricula through the lens of UHCL’s Applied Critical Thinking model.

Ms. Miralles served as principal engineer/innovator and business technology strategist with NASA contractor CACI International. For more than 26 years, her work has been integral to human spaceflight. In the Virtual Reality Laboratory at Johnson Space Center, she and her engineers trained astronauts for spacewalks in simulations of making repairs in zero gravity. She co-designed VR graphics software still in use by NASA and International Space Station partners.

A proud UHCL alumna, Ms. Miralles earned a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Information Systems in 1992, and a Master of Business Administration in 2012 from UHCL. In 2016, she received UHCL’s Distinguished Alumni Award. Among her proudest roles, she says, is encouraging young women to pursue careers in STEM through fairs, lectures and other outreach efforts.

Please join me in welcoming Ms. Miralles back to UHCL in her new role.

Sincerely,

Ira K. Blake, Ph.D.
President