Ashley Kowalski ’07 named as 2026 Commencement Speaker

We are delighted to announce our 2026 Commencement speaker: Ms. Ashley Kowalski ’07, project leader in The Aerospace Corporation’s International Programs Division. Ashley will speak at Mercy High School’s 63rd commencement exercises at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen on Thursday, May 28, 2026. Previous distinguished speakers have included Sr. Helen Amos, RSM, executive chair of Mercy Health Services Board of Trustees; Ms. Mary Ann Scully, dean of the Sellinger School of Business & Management at Loyola University Maryland and former president and CEO of Howard Bank; Ms. Lenora Henry ’88, executive director of the American Red Cross of Central Maryland; and Ms. Katie Allston, LCSW-C, former president & CEO at Marian House. 

As a project leader at The Aerospace Corporation, a nonprofit organization that provides independent technical expertise and research for national security, civil, and commercial space programs, Ashley contributes to international programs alongside the U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command International Affairs office. She joined The Aerospace Corporation in 2014 as a member of the technical staff and later served as a project engineer and project leader. Ashley holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical and aerospace engineering from George Washington University. 

For eight months beginning in November 2021, Ashley served as a flight engineer for SIRIUS-21, a long-duration spaceflight analog mission in Moscow, Russia. This spaceflight simulation study helped NASA researchers learn more about the effects of isolation and confinement on human psychology, physiology, and team dynamics. The SIRIUS-21 findings continue to inform Artemis exploration missions to the Moon and long-duration missions to Mars. Ashley also served as crew engineer for the first-ever all-Aerospace analog crew sent to the Mars Desert Research Station (Crew #269) in Utah where the crew tested new technologies and methodologies that could help shape the future of space exploration. Most recently, Ashley advanced to the top 120 finalists from more than 8,000 applicants in NASA’s highly competitive 2024 Astronaut Selection Program, and continues to pursue her aspiration of human spaceflight, having conducted research aboard parabolic flights in 2025 to test astronaut monitoring technology in microgravity conditions. 

Ashley’s future promise was much in evidence during her Mercy career. A Flame Award winner, Ashley participated in activities that touched nearly every aspect of life at Mercy, including academic clubs, athletics, fine arts, and Field Day. At the end of her junior year, Ashley was recognized with the George Washington University School of Engineering and Applied Science Award for earning the highest GPA among her classmates in both math and science. She was also named an Archdiocesan Distinctive Scholar and received a Maryland State Merit Scholastic Award. She is grateful to the faculty and staff who pushed her academically, which positioned her well for the future. In 2022, Mercy honored Ashley with the McAuley Outstanding Alumna Award. We look forward to hearing Ashley's congratulatory message for the Class of 2026 as they become Women of Mercy!