Video: Former Space Shuttle Engineer Talks About Ethics in the Workplace

MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY, Miss. (WCBI) –Ethics. It isn’t exactly rocket science, but it does have its place there.

That was the message Wednesday at Mississippi State.

Allan McDonald, former director of the Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Motor Project, spoke about the decisions on the ground that led to the Challenger disaster.

McDonald was one of the first to raise concerns about compromised O-rings in the shuttle’s booster rockets, and recommended against the launch. But those concerns were brushed aside due to the heightened publicity surrounding the Challenger Mission.

He spoke about the importance of standing by your convictions, even in the face of criticism.

“I’m happy to be here. I speak to a lot of university’s on engineering ethics and decision making and how important that is to speak up and offer your opinion. Become you may have thought of something nobody else had. If that information is not available for the decision makers to use it’s lost.”

McDonald’s presentation was part of the Bagley Distinguished Speaker Series.