McIntyre comes from San Antonio, Tex. She is the only daughter of two teachers—her father taught high school and her mother taught elementary school. As she grew up, she received a private education, predominantly from girls’ schools. During her high school years she became focused on science and decided that she wanted to become a physicist.

"It was during this time that there was an article on Dr. Jackson in Ebony magazine, about her being the first black woman to receive a Ph.D. in physics from MIT," McIntyre remembered. "There was a picture of her with the article, and I could give you some extremely specific details about that picture, as if I had seen it yesterday. It was a powerful statement for me."

After she graduated from high school, she went on to study at the University of Texas.

"It was a different experience for me, moving into a much larger, much more diverse student body," mentioned McIntyre. In addition to her studies of physics, she also worked with an economist, and this experience served to broaden her range of expertise.

Following her undergraduate years, she interned at Argonne National Laboratories before she continued on with her graduate studies at Brandeis University. "I focused on condensed matter physics, and it was a coursework masters degree, " stated McIntyre.

Her goal at the time was to become a research physicist and thus continued her education by working on her doctoral degree at MIT.

"It was a wonderful experience. … I can not even explain how wonderful that experience was," she smiled.

While there, her work progressed from condensed matter physics to semiconductor research. She met Jackson during her first year of studies. "I contacted her and asked her if I could work with her at Bell Laboratories, and she agreed. I spent a series of three summers with her," recalled McIntyre.

She received her Ph.D. in physics in 1990. "I did a couple of post-docs, one at the University of California at San Diego, and the other was at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C.," she said.

Following her second post-doctoral position, McIntyre took a faculty position at George Mason University. While in Washington, McIntyre maintained contact with Jackson, who was serving as chair of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission at the time.

"It was spring of 1999 that Dr. Jackson and I were at a meeting for physicists, and we were talking about her transition to the university. She asked me if I would be interested in taking this position," she recollected. "It was not where I was headed in terms of a career path, so I talked to many colleagues and mentors, but it was an opportunity that was quite unique."

Her position at RPI allows her a view of all things related to the operation of the university at the highest level. "It’s very fast paced, and to me that is satisfying. I think the two big projects that we have coming online [the electronic media and biotech centers], coming to fruition is very exciting ," said McIntyre.

Her advice for students at RPI is to always reach out for opportunities. "You may not get it, but if you don’t reach for it, you probably won’t get it. Very few things actually come your way without putting something out there. Being passive doesn’t get you where you want to go."

In addition to being the first chief of staff to the president at RPI, McIntyre is assistant secretary of the Institute. More recently, she was appointed the associate vice president for policy and planning. In her spare time, she enjoys reading and keeping up on current events.