Barbara Bell

Captain, U.S. Navy, Retired

“It’s not a matter of if you are going to meet challenge or resistance, but a matter of when and how you deal with it."

WORK EXPERIENCE

  • Director, Center for STEM Education for Girls at Harpeth Hall.

  • Early female Naval Academy graduate.

  • Former Program Manager PMA 213 Air Traffic Control and Combat Identification Systems, NAVAIR.

  • Approached Capitol Hill in 1993 to repeal Combat Exclusion Laws.

Barbara Bell holds a Master’s Degree in Astronautical Engineering and a PhD in Education. She retired as a Naval Captain and now serves as the Director of the Harpeth Hall Center for STEM Education which is committed to ending the gender gap in STEM fields. Bell recalls being well embraced by peers during her time in the military. Even though she was a part of a male dominated field, she chose to embrace her status and become a role model, opening doors for the women who followed.