Lara Pagano

Lara Pagano is the Organizational Health and Culture Lead where she supports initiatives and activities that aim to improve organizational health and culture across the entire agency. 

Lara took her strong passion for weather to the NC State University where she earned her Bachelor's Degree in Meteorology in 2008. Fortunate enough to be selected as the SCEP at NWS Raleigh, Lara continued her education at NCSU and earned her Masters Degree in Atmospheric Science.  

Lara began her career as a full time Meteorologist at the NWS in Morehead City, NC.  After several years, she received a promotion to the Atlanta, GA NWS office in 2016.  During her time in Atlanta, Lara conducted numerous temporary deployments during high impact weather events (Hurricanes Matthew, Harvey, and Irma). In 2018, Lara took a promotion to the Weather Prediction Center (WPC) in College Park, MD, becoming a Lead Forecaster in 2021.  Lara has served in various leadership roles related to Impact Decision Support Services (IDSS), Hydrology, and Organizational Design. 

Through her extensive experience working at several different forecast offices as well as across various levels within the organization, Lara has a unique perspective on how organizational health and culture can positively impact the employee experience and meeting the NWS mission and vision.