Dr. John Blevins receives Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal, premier award for career federal employees

HUNTSVILLE – Dr. John Blevins has received the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal, or “Sammie,” considered the highest honor for career federal employees. Currently Chief Engineer for the NASA Space Launch System (SLS) program, Blevins earned an M.S. degree in 1993 and Ph.D. in 1998 in mechanical and aerospace engineering from UAH, a part of The University of Alabama System. The alumnus has served the U.S. space program for 26 years since coming to work at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., in 1999.

“It is an incredible honor to be recognized with a Sammie,” Blevins says. “This honor is truly about the incredible engineering teams that I get to lead across the country that are committed to achieving the ambitious space exploration goals of our great nation.”

Prior to his current assignment, Blevins served as the SLS Deputy Chief Engineer, as well as Technical Assistant in the Structural Design and Analysis Division in the NASA Spacecraft & Vehicle Systems Department where he was the Aerodynamics sub-discipline lead for SLS. He also acted as lead for the SLS Buffet and Vibroacoustics Resolution Task Teams and as SLS Alternate Discipline Lead Engineer for Structures and Environments. Other positions included stints as a propulsion researcher and principal investigator, as well as combustion devices engineer, before becoming team lead in Aerodynamics.

“I’d like to congratulate John Blevins at Marshall on being named a 2025 Service to America Medal honoree,” said Janet Petro, NASA acting administrator, in making the announcement. “John, as chief engineer for the Space Launch System rocket, played a key role in the Artemis I mission and is helping us prepare for Artemis II. These awards recognize the highest levels of public service, and John’s work reflects the dedication and excellence that define our NASA team.”

Blevins is an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and a licensed Professional Engineer. He is also an experienced pilot with airline transport pilot and flight instructor ratings. The honoree credits his most memorable and significant experiences to a daily drive for consistency and excellence.

“The most important thing in any career is consistently showing up and striving to be the best we can be every day,” Blevins says. “The great milestones and visible accomplishments, like the Artemis I launch, are amazing culminations of that daily work.”

The SLS is the only launch vehicle capable of sending humans to the moon since the Saturn V, aimed at returning astronauts to the lunar surface for the first time since the Apollo Program, as Blevins details in this video.

“For me, being involved in the Space Launch System from the beginning through the first launch was an incredible experience,” the honoree notes. “I started as the Lead Aerodynamicist, and led wind tunnel tests as the first major milestones in the program, and at Artemis I launch, I had the privilege to lead the engineering team as the Chief Engineer.”

The Sammie recipient earned his B.S. degree in mechanical engineering at Tennessee Technological University before coming to UAH to complete his education.

“UAH graduate school provided a wonderful foundation for an aerospace engineering career,” Blevins says. “My years as a full-time engineering graduate student provided not only the technical foundation to do analysis and lead test programs, but also provided an excellent understanding of engineering program life cycles and how to build coalitions that are necessary to make big things happen. I am in debt to UAH, and particularly the Propulsion Research Center, for creating an atmosphere that fostered rigorous engineering analysis, ingenuity and teamwork.”

“Dr. Blevins has achieved tremendous success during his NASA career, and we are extremely proud of him,” says professor Robert Frederick, director of UAH’s Propulsion Research Center. “Over 30 years ago, he was among the first cohort of graduate students supported by the Center. As his advisor for his master’s degree, it was clear to me that John was an exceptionally diligent researcher with a keen eye for detail and a thorough technical understanding of his work. This special recognition makes us very proud of him and his team for their distinguished technical and leadership achievements.”