Kim Barnette, PhD

Kim Barnette is the program manager for LMI’s team at NASA, implementing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) initiatives within their Science Mission Directorate. Kim previously managed the General Services Administration (GSA) portfolio at LMI. She has over 20 years of experience as a skilled facilitator, executive leader, program evaluator, and academic trainer. She offers a wealth of experience as a consultant, project director, and senior researcher, translating local and federal government agency data into useful information. As an LMI Fellow (2022-23 cohort), she is an outstanding source of deep domain expertise in people analytics and takes a data-driven approach to employee recruitment, selection, engagement, and retention. As a 2022 Community Connector LMI Luminary Awardee, she was recognized for benefiting our academic community, growing our academic partnerships, and expanding on LMI’s DEIA goals and initiatives.

Kim also supports LMI’s Applied Research & Partnerships, strengthening and expanding academic relationships. (She has previously served as our liaison to Howard University and to the University of Virginia School of Data Science). She was part of the innovation team for the LMI Forge™ DEIA prototype for measuring the effects of hiring practices and DEIA initiatives on employee opportunities. She wants to expand on that work with universities to ensure that students are afforded opportunities to support Forge™ research and development activities, learn new skills, and increase their digital enablement IQ. She is particularly passionate about advancing STEAM goals — integrating science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and arts education, and believes innovation and digital enablement are key to this advancement.  

Kim came to LMI in August 2019 from the University of the District of Columbia, where she brought her extensive background in analytics consulting into the classroom environment, teaching mathematics and statistics courses. Before her time at UDC, Kim was the chief operating officer of Delta Decisions of DC, LLC, a management consulting firm that she cofounded in 2006.

Kim received her PhD in operations research in 2000 from North Carolina State University, her master’s in applied mathematics in 1994 from Clark Atlanta University, and her bachelor’s in mathematics in 1992 from Spelman College. In her spare time, she volunteers as an experienced member and leader on non-profit boards She is president of the board of trustees for Imagination Stage, which brings theatre arts education to youth in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, and a member of the Board of Directors for DC Action, an organization focused on making the District of Columbia a place where all young people grow up safe and resilient. 

“While working at LMI, I have leveraged my strengths as a leader, mentor, strategic planner, facilitator, public speaker, and collaborator while cultivating opportunities for technicians and data scientists to develop products and deliver services.”