Suzanna Gardner
Suzanna Gardner
Lead Program Manager, Global Partnerships & Engagement, Research Computing
Suzanna is the Global Partnerships & Engagement Lead for Research Operations at Purdue University’s Rosen Center for Advanced Computing (RCAC), where she leads outreach and engagement for the Anvil supercomputer. In this role, she designs and carries out strategic initiatives and builds partnerships that expand awareness, usage, and participation in high-performance computing (HPC) across campus, national, and international cyberinfrastructure communities. A skilled project and program manager, she coordinates complex, multi-stakeholder efforts from scoping and planning through execution and evaluation, so that RCAC’s outreach, engagement, and partnership programs run smoothly and deliver measurable impact. She holds an M.A. in International Affairs and Leadership and brings a global perspective to her work.
Suzanna directs RCAC’s K-12 summer programs, including Code Explorers, CyberSafe Heroes, and the Mission to Mars STEM Summer Day Camp. These programs introduce students to STEM, data science, and cybersecurity, and have consistently filled since their launch. Through these and other initiatives, she contributes to workforce development, helping cultivate the next generation of cyberinfrastructure professionals.
She collaborates with national organizations to advance access to cyberinfrastructure and represents RCAC’s outreach mission at major conferences, including PEARC, RMACC, SACNAS, MS-CC, and SC. Her partnership work spans R1 and non-R1 institutions, industry, and a wide range of academic and professional communities. She also works with international academic and government partners, particularly in Central Asia, to explore collaborations in research computing, training, and education, and she helps host international delegations at Purdue. Together, these efforts connect a global network of communities to the resources that national supercomputing offers.
Outside of work, Suzanna is an accomplished athlete who holds a 3rd-degree black belt in judo and made history as the first woman from Uzbekistan to earn a medal at the 1999 Asian Judo Championship. Her athletic career took her across borders and opened doors internationally, an experience that continues to shape her global outlook. Born in Azerbaijan with Georgian roots, and having grown up in Uzbekistan before making her way to the United States, she brings a genuinely international perspective to everything she does, both in the office and beyond. She speaks multiple languages, reflecting the rich cultural background she carries into her work and relationships. She is an avid traveler and food enthusiast who stays grounded through fitness and lifting, a fitting pursuit for a former competitive judoka.