audio by artist jill tietjen troy eller

Jill Tietjen, a past president and Fellow of the Society of Women Engineers, discusses the road that led her to successfully nominate SWE Fellow and Achievement Award recipient Yvonne Brill for the National Medal of Technology and Innovation for her invention of the hydrazine resistojet propulsion system, which became the standard in the satellite industry. Tietjen explains that that women have to nominate other women for awards because female award recipients become role models for young women, and they generally won’t be nominated for those awards by men. She also explained that she’s nominated Brill for so many awards not only because of her technical achievements, but also because Brill herself has put tremendous effort into nominating other women for awards.

This oral history interview was recorded October 14, 2011 at the Society of Women Engineers WE11 National Conference in Chicago, Illinois, as part of the SWE Grassroots Oral History Project. The interviewer is Troy Eller. This excerpt was selected and produced by the SWE Archivist. The excerpt may have been edited for length, however the intent of the interviewee's words remain the same. Audio excerpts may be used for research and educational purposes only.