Jabin Wade II
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (Feb. 26, 2026) – Jabin Wade II, a Prairie View A&M University graduate student in computer science, is taking the lessons he learned on campus to new heights, reaching all the way into space exploration.
Wade received the Innovation of the Month Award at CACI International, a national security company providing technology solutions to NASA, for his groundbreaking work on “Containerized Flight Software Test on Gateway-in-a-Box.” The recognition highlights his ability to apply classroom knowledge to solve real-world challenges at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
Wade has worked in Dr. Shield Lin’s Space Exploration Software Simulation Lab (SESSL) for three years, first as an undergraduate assistant and now as a graduate student assistant. Sponsored by CACI, SESSL partners with NASA on cutting-edge research in simulation and flight software development and testing.
As a student intern, Wade joined a CACI Software Support team in late 2024. He quickly noticed a major problem: too many developers needed access to flight software, but there weren’t enough workstations. Drawing on what he had learned at PVAMU, he proposed a solution: containerization, a method that allows multiple isolated instances of software to run on a single machine.
“With containerization, several developers could work on the same software simultaneously,” Wade explained. “It not only solved our developer-to-workstation ratio problem, but also increased test accuracy, since real-world flight software doesn’t run coupled on the same machine.”
With his team lead’s approval, Wade spent five months developing the tool alongside his regular duties. Though he was nervous at first, his persistence paid off. After presenting the completed tool to his team lead and technical area lead, he was nominated for CACI’s Innovation of the Month Award.
Wade presented his work to CACI Program Manager Bob Zehentner and NASA Software, Robotics, and Simulation Division leadership. “They were all in awe of the innovation and my out-of-the-box thinking,” Wade said. NASA leadership mentioned how pleased they were to see the new generation of engineers bringing knowledge from their education directly into the workforce.
Wade officially received the award at a recent CACI All-Hands meeting in Houston, where he presented his innovation to the entire Houston program. “This is an excellent accomplishment and not an easy feat for a student,” said Dr. Shield Lin, professor of mechanical engineering in the Roy G. Perry College of Engineering.
This marks Wade’s third award from CACI and NASA. Last summer, he and his team received two awards for their development of flight software test procedures.
As Wade continues his graduate studies at PVAMU, his success stands as a testament to the University’s commitment to preparing students to make immediate, high-impact contributions on Earth…and beyond.
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