Decades before her work influenced Pentagon-level decision-making, Sara Jane (Bailey) Haehl ’72 was a transfer student at Franklin College, newly married, commuting daily and preparing for a career in education.

“At that time, what else was a woman majoring in math going to do but teach?” she said, sharing a sentiment that reflected the era more than a personal doubt.

Following a traditional path after graduation, Haehl earned her bachelor’s degree and returned to her hometown of Shelbyville, Indiana, to teach high school mathematics. She enjoyed reconnecting with her former teachers and helping students, but over time she felt constrained by the role.

“I loved teaching but not the cafeteria duty and the library monitoring, and never being able to leave the building,” Haehl said. “There were several factors that made me realize I didn’t want to teach for the rest of my life.”

Nearly two years into her teaching career, Haehl welcomed the birth of her first daughter and transitioned to staying at home full time. A year later, her second daughter was born, soon followed by a third. Amid raising a young family, she also felt a growing pull to continue her education.

“I finished a master’s degree in mathematics education at IU in 1976, still trying to figure out what I wanted to do next,” she recalled. As Haehl considered a career in accounting, an unexpected opportunity emerged when the National Science Foundation and Purdue University created a pathway into electrical engineering program for women who already held degrees in mathematics or science.

Haehl recalls that competition for the program was intense, with 125 women applying for the 25 limited spots. Ultimately, only 17 women completed the program, and she was one of them.

“It wasn’t easy,” she said. “There were definitely moments where you knew you were in a space that hadn’t always been open to you.” In many ways, she had been preparing for that opportunity all along. As a child, she often worked alongside her father, an electrical engineer who ran a motor shop before supporting power companies throughout Indiana. The electrical engineering program gave her the chance to exercise and grow her technical skill set, and she thrived.

While completing her coursework at Purdue’s Indianapolis campus, she accepted a part-time position in logistics at the Naval Avionics Center (NAC), which was nearby. Her work there escalated from learning theory to real-world problem solving after she finished the engineering program and accepted a full-time job offer. It was 1982 and the beginning of what would become her 33-year career in managing programs for the U.S. military.

At the NAC, she spent nearly a decade evaluating weapons and guidance systems, troubleshooting problems and ensuring components worked together effectively. That work took on deeper meaning during Operation Desert Storm, when she helped support technologies used aboard U.S. aircraft carriers. “It makes you feel rewarded when you’re doing something for the country and for those who are in the military, protecting them. It’s a valuable feeling,” she said.

She also contributed improvements to anti-submarine warfare systems and learned that even the most com plex technologies can hinge on small details and the people behind them.

By the early 1990s, Haehl was a mother of three, divorced and navigating new levels of independence. The stakes involved more than personal ambition; they were about building a stable future for her family. “I knew I was facing a glass ceiling in naval avionics, and I needed a career that would allow me to support my girls and plan for my retirement,” she said. When she was offered a position with the Naval Air Systems Command, she relocated to Arlington, Virginia, where she worked in anti-submarine warfare, electronic warfare and other defense programs. A 14-month assignment at the Pentagon further expanded her experience.

“That office worked on the President’s private helicopters, and I got to step inside one to view the entire system,” she said. As her career progressed, Haehl continued her professional development and earned a Master of Science in National Security and Strategic Studies with a focus on command and control from the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. She vividly recalls being in class on Sept. 11, 2001, when the news of U.S. commercial airplane flight hijackings by terrorists began to unfold.

“We came out to the hallway and saw it on the monitors,” she said. “They thought a plane had hit the Pentagon. They were evacuating the building.” The moment underscored the real-world impact of her work and deepened her commitment to taking on increasingly strategic roles.

In 2002, she began working closely with senior military officers and classified employees at the E6 Command and Control Program Office, which communicates and directs military operations during crises, such as nuclear scenarios. In subsequent command and control roles, she worked across Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps branches, contributing to their joint operations. In a later role with the Space and Naval Warfare Center, on assignment to the FBI for Program Management, Haehl contributed to systems designed to maintain communication and command capabilities even in the most extreme scenarios. Her final and, as she described it, “favorite” position before retiring in 2015 was at the Pentagon’s Office of Networks and Information Integration for Joint Command and Control, which over sees how information flows across the military, ensuring leaders can understand unfolding situations, communicate in real time and make coordinated decisions.

In that role, Haehl collaborated with engineers, senior military officials and civilian leaders to align programs and break down communication barriers. She built a reputation for asking the questions others might overlook: “What about this?” and “Have we thought about that?”

Besides her technical expertise, Haehl believes communication was one of her greatest strengths. She is particularly grateful for the Franklin College literature classes that challenged her to articulate ideas clearly and thoughtfully. “In the long run, that background was really valuable to me,” she shared. Whether collaborating with engineers, briefing military leaders or navigating high-level discussions in secure environments, clarity mattered as much as accuracy. “It doesn’t matter how much knowledge you have if you can’t communicate well,” she said.

Looking back, she does not frame her career in terms of obstacles, though there were many. As a woman entering engineering in the early 1980s, she encountered moments of doubt and, occasionally, outright dismissal. “One engineering teacher literally told us we should be home barefoot and pregnant,” she recalled.

But once she got into the field and proved her capabilities, respect followed. “I worked with wonderful people throughout my career; I really did,” she said. “We had mutual respect.” She credits much of her success to perseverance, mentorship and a willingness to keep learning, whether that meant navigating new technical challenges, participating in leadership programs or simply asking questions at the highest levels. “My dad always told me, ‘Go to the top,’” she said. “If you have a question, go ask.” It was advice she carried from childhood to career.

Now, more than a decade into her retirement, Haehl reflects on a career that defied expectations and spanned an extraordinary range of experiences. “I don’t talk much about my career now; it’s kind of a foreign language to most. I usually just tell people I worked in lots of different technical fields in program management and systems engineering.”

She remains a strong advocate for the kind of education that first set her on that career path. “I’ve always felt that education is extremely valuable to personal development, and a liberal arts education broadens you in ways you don’t always expect,” she said.

At Franklin College, she found that breadth through courses in literature, history, religion and philosophy while pursuing mathematics. “Franklin gives students the chance to see what fits,” she said. “It opens doors they may not even know are there.”

Her life stands as proof. Rather than following a single, defined path, she chose to step through new doors as they appeared.

Haehl, a resident of Friendswood, Texas, was proud to be invited in 2018 to speak with students in a Franklin College mathematics class, where she shared her perspective on the value of combining liberal arts education with technical expertise. More recently, she returned to campus to attend the Campaign Gala, where the Franklin Forward campaign was publicly launched.

By: Amy (Kean) VerSteeg ’96

Republished from the Franklin College Magazine, Summer 2026