Jed Hancock named president of Space Dynamics

Utah State University’s Space Dynamics Laboratory has announced that Jed Hancock has been named its new president, succeeding H. Scott Hinton, who announced that he will retire on June 30.

Hancock most recently served as SDL’s executive director of programs and operations, overseeing engineering and operations and all programs in the Civil and Commercial Space; Strategic and Military Space; and Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) divisions. He was previously division director of the Civil and Commercial Space program, responsible for a portfolio of projects for government, academic, and commercial customers.

“Jed has been a valuable leader at SDL whose breadth and depth of knowledge about our partners and their missions, our capabilities and our people will serve the organization well as he assumes the post of president,” said SDL board chairman, Gen. Bruce Carlson (USAF Ret.). “He is uniquely qualified to take SDL to new levels of growth in providing NASA with innovative solutions to ‘explore, discover, and expand knowledge for the benefit of humanity,’ and in providing the Department of Defense and other customers with cutting-edge technologies to help ensure our nation’s security.”

“Throughout nearly two decades with SDL, first as a member of the board of directors, then as president, Scott’s foresight helped the organization strengthen its role as a trusted agent of the U.S. government,” said Carlson. “Scott’s resolute leadership coupled with his steadfast commitment to the 1,000 employees of SDL will leave an indelible mark on the laboratory. We wish him well in his retirement.”

Hinton joined USU in 2002 as dean of the College of Engineering and was subsequently elected to SDL’s board of directors the same year. In 2013, he was appointed SDL president. During his tenure as president, Hinton guided SDL through rapid, unprecedented growth, leveraging SDL’s workforce and expertise in small satellite systems, electro-optical sensor systems research and development, cyber analytics and other core competencies to grow the laboratory’s portfolio.

Hancock is an expert in optical sciences, system engineering and program management. He has served as program manager for numerous civil and military space programs and as an optical science and engineering resource for the laboratory. He specializes in designing and analyzing electro-optical systems and has led space instrumentation program teams developing infrared, visible and ultraviolet systems. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from USU and a master’s and doctorate from the University of Arizona’s College of Optical Sciences.