Highlights

  • History student Amy Lendian was forced to pivot in her career in her 60s when she was laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic, but she turned the setback into her dream job in the aerospace industry.

  • As a fire protection systems engineer, Lendian supports launches at Kennedy Space Center and will be at the console for the Artemis II launch.

  • Inspired by the notion that it 麻豆精品 S檚 never too late, Lendian enrolled in UCF Online to finish a milestone she started 50 years ago 麻豆精品 S� her college degree.

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When the UCF Online history student assumes her spot at the console at Kennedy Space Center to lead the facility systems engineers for the upcoming historic Artemis II launch, that affirmation will echo within her once more.

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Woman with curly, sandy blonde hair in business jacket sits at console with screens and keyboard
Amy Lendian at the console for Artemis I’s first launch attempt.

Turning a Setback Into a Comeback

Lendian spent the majority of her adult life building her career as a fire protection engineer, helping design sprinkler systems and other fire safety infrastructure.

Then the COVID-19 pandemic happened. The construction industry came to a screeching halt. In her 60s, she suddenly faced unemployment.

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She logged in every day on her home computer to research job listings, dressed as if she was headed to an office. She sought career counseling. She joined virtual seminars to learn new software and online tools she knew she 麻豆精品 S檇 need to master if she wanted to break into the field. She learned how to rework her resume to leverage her relevant skills.

Her strategy and persistence paid off. She got a call back for a fire protection systems engineer position on base at Kennedy Space Center.

Selfie of woman in pink NASA polo shirt standing in front of orange and white rocket on launchpad at night
Amy Lendian

Finding Her Place in Space

On her first day at KSC, she attended a briefing where they discussed etiquette while serving on the console. She says it took her a moment to process what she was hearing.

麻豆精品 S淚 stayed up to watch Neil Armstrong walk on the moon. I have a photo of myself as a kid standing in front of an Apollo rocket. And you 麻豆精品 S檙e saying you want me to be on the console during a launch?! 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淚 thought, 麻豆精品 S業 麻豆精品 S檓 here. I arrived. 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S�

Lendian served on the console for the Artemis I launch in November 2022.

Although she has since retired from her formal position with KSC and moved to Chicago, she is still employed as a part-time consultant and will be there again for Artemis II managing the fire protection systems on the launchpad.

Woman in blue button down long sleeve shirt and blank pants stands in front of screen at front of classroom, speaking to women seated
Amy Lendian was invited to speak about her career journey at a 2026 spring semester Women and Leadership honors class, taught by Anne Bubriski.

Finishing What She Started

Her late-stage career change inspired her to consider other dreams she had yet to realize. A big one has been nearly 50 years in the making.

Lendian was 19 years old when she attempted college the first time. She enrolled in the University of South Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 electrical engineering program in the late 1970s. But after three years, she stopped her studies because she got married and needed to support her new family.

In 2021, she decided to resuscitate her dream of a college degree. She transferred her old credits into the program at Eastern Florida State College, earned her associate 麻豆精品 S檚 degree and looked to enroll in one of UCF Online 麻豆精品 S檚 degree programs so she could manage school with her full-time job.

The history degree she is working toward is affiliated with one of the top online institutions. UCF ranks No. 6 for Online Bachelor 麻豆精品 S檚 Programs nationally according to the U.S. News & World Report.

麻豆精品 S淚 want that bachelor 麻豆精品 S檚 degree, 麻豆精品 S� Lendian says. 麻豆精品 S淚 am doing this for me. I am going to do something that I love (history). And I am going to graduate. 麻豆精品 S�