Staff Biography: Danielle Rowland
Danielle Rowland, Senior Broadening Participation Programs Manager, manages ODI’s student programs and serves as NRAO’s Native Nations Engagement Lead.
Danielle is a graduate of Columbia University (Astrophysics), a National Astronomy Consortium (NAC) alum (Space Telescope Science Institute), and served as a Helen Fellow at the American Museum of Natural History. In addition to her roles at NRAO, Danielle also serves as co-I on the VA-NC Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) and Cosmic AI Director of Broadening Participation. Danielle is internationally recognized for her work and her expertise in the area of broadening participation in STEM.
Responsibilities at NRAO
As manager of NRAO’s broadening participation student efforts, Danielle leads the following student programs:
Danielle and her team also support:
Native Nations Engagement Lead:
In her leadership role as NRAO’s Native Nations Engagement Lead (link to page), Danielle guides the NRAO’s efforts to build and maintain meaningful, respectful partnerships with Native communities, particularly those neighboring the NSF Very Large Array (NSF VLA) and the upcoming Next Generation VLA (ngVLA) and across all Observatory settings.
Danielle collaborates with NRAO departments to develop outreach strategies to enhance relationships with Native communities, foster cultural sensitivity, and advocate for community-driven initiatives within NRAO.
Danielle brings to this important role a strong background in community engagement and an understanding of Native American cultures and contemporary issues. She is an enrolled member of the Tonawanda Seneca Nation located in Western New York State and has worked to build connections between indigenous scholars throughout her academic career through public presentations, community gatherings and outreach events.