Katy SummerlinSenior Director, Policy Communications

Katy Summerlin is the Senior Director of Policy Communications at the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), bringing more than 13 years of public affairs experience to the role. Her work has supported some of the most significant aerospace milestones of the past decade, including the launch of NASA’s Artemis program and advancements in next-generation spacecraft manufacturing.

At NASA, Summerlin served as Deputy Press Secretary under NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, where she helped tell the story of 21st-century space exploration during pivotal missions such as SpaceX Demo-2 and the launch of the Mars rover Perseverance. Most recently at NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Summerlin worked to share the incredible breakthrough research happening on the International Space Station with a worldwide audience.

Leading Space Marketing efforts for Maxar Technologies (now Lanteris Space Systems), Summerlin oversaw the marketing rollout for a new spacecraft product line. As the satellite industry saw changes to the size and scale of products customers needed for missions, Summerlin worked to showcase Maxar’s solutions to both government and commercial customers. 

She began her career as a staffer in the U.S. House of Representatives, where she worked her way up from Staff Assistant to Communications Director. Beginning in the office of her hometown Congressman Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va), she then started her communications career on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform under Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.). She later went on to serve as Communications Director for Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga). After leaving the Hill, she joined bipartisan public affairs firm ROKK Solutions, where she helped craft winning legislative and communications strategies to help clients move the policy needle on meaningful issues ranging from criminal justice reform to healthcare. 

She holds a B.A. in Journalism from James Madison University, with a minor in Political Science.