Michael Huggins ('85, Aerospace Engineering)

Michael Huggins

Site Director & Chief of Rocket Propulsion Division, Air Force Research Laboratory

BS Aerospace Engineering, Cal Poly Pomona, 1985

As a product of the sixties, Michael Huggins grew up fascinated by the “space race” and the idea of man walking on the moon. As far back as he can remember, he wanted to build and fly rockets—and even used his home chemistry set to mix rocket propellants in his garage.

For college, he chose Cal Poly Pomona because it aligned perfectly with his interests and partly because of his fond memories visiting a campus open house event one year with his uncle.

After graduation, he started as a propulsion engineer working on the initial production and flight testing of the Air Force’s B-1 bomber. Later, he moved into engineering management and eventually organizational leadership, serving companies like Rockwell International, the Air Force Phillips Laboratory, the Air Force Astronautics Laboratory and the Air Force Research Laboratory.

When giving advice to engineering students today, Mike says, “Always act with integrity, don’t be afraid to take technological risks in solving new challenges, and always maintain a ‘balanced’ life. I work to live, but I don’t live to work.”