(The National Transportation Safety Board issued the following news release on May 31.)
WASHINGTON — National Transportation Safety Board Member Ellen Engleman Conners departs the National Transportation Safety Board today. Engleman Conners will become Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the Indiana Association of Realtors on June 1, 2006.
“It’s been a tremendous privilege to serve in this Adminstration,” said Engleman Conners. “I look forward to bringing this experience with me when I return ‘back home in Indiana.'”
Member Engleman Conners joined the Safety Board in March 2003 as Chairman. During her Chairmanship of the NTSB, Engleman Conners successfully focused on reducing the number of open or non-implemented NTSB safety recommendations to the lowest number since 1975, for which she received Aviation Week’s highest honor, the Safety Laurels award in 2003. Also, Engleman Conners served as the Member on-scene for numerous accidents, including the Staten Island Ferry accident in 2003, the Baltimore water taxi capsizing in 2004, and the Southwest Airlines runway overrun in Chicago, Illinois last December. Member Engleman Conners submitted her letter of resignation from the Safety Board to President George W. Bush last month.
Before joining the NTSB, Engleman Conners served as the Administrator of the Research and Special Programs Administration at the U.S. Department of Transportation. During her tenure she focused on improving safety in the transportation of hazardous materials and the nation’s 2.2 million miles of pipelines, including leading the effort to successfully fulfill NTSB recommendations for the Office of Pipeline Safety, resulting in their removal from the NTSB’s “Most Wanted” list. She was responsible for the Office of Emergency Transportation during September 11th, for which she received the Secretary of Transportation’s 9-11 Distinguished Service Medal and oversaw the design of the new Crisis Communication Management Center. She also co- chaired the transfer of the U.S. Coast Guard to the new Department of Homeland Security, for which she was the recipient of the U.S. Coast Guard Distinguished Public Service Award, its highest non-life-saving medal.
Prior to joining the U.S. Department of Transportation in 2001, she was a recognized and successful business leader in Indianapolis, Indiana and has held a number of executive positions in the private sector. She is also an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve. Member Engleman Conners earned both a bachelor’s and a Juris Doctor degree from Indiana University, and has a Masters in Public Administration from Harvard University.