>> STEM FANS,
ARE YOU READY?
LET'S HEAR IT FOR
YOUR WORLD-CLASS
NASA ALL-STAR STEM TEAM!
FROM NASA CENTERS
ACROSS THE COUNTRY:
MONICA GUZIK,
RAFAEL MERCADO,
IVETTE RIVERA-APONTE,
AARON YAZZIE,
NIKESHA DAVIS,
AND SAMUEL JAMES.
>> I AM A ENGINEER TECHNICIAN
AT NASA LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER
IN AEROSPACE COMPOSITE
MODELS DEVELOPMENT,
WHERE WE FABRICATE RESEARCH
MODEL AIRCRAFTS AND SPACECRAFTS
TO BE TESTED IN WIND TUNNELS.
MY NAME IS SAM JAMES
AND I GREW UP IN
ELIZABETH CITY, NORTH CAROLINA.
I GRADUATED FROM ELIZABETH CITY
STATE UNIVERSITY WITH
A B.S. DEGREE IN
INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY.
AS A KID, I ALWAYS TRIED
TO FIND A BETTER WAY
OF DOING THINGS AND KNEW
TECHNOLOGY FASCINATED ME.
MY ADVICE TO STUDENTS IS
DO NOT LET YOUR FAILURES KEEP
YOU FROM BEING SUCCESSFUL.
>> I'M IVETTE RIVERA-APONTE
AND I'M A PROJECT ENGINEER AT
THE NASA KENNEDY SPACE CENTER
WHERE I SUPPORT THE NEW
SPACE LAUNCH SYSTEM.
I GREW UP IN MAYAGUEZ,
PUERTO RICO AND I CURRENTLY LIVE
IN ORLANDO, FLORIDA.
MY GRANDFATHER WAS THE FIRST
PERSON TO INTRODUCE ME
TO ENGINEERING AND I DISCOVERED
I CAN COMBINE MY LOVE FOR MATH
AND SPACE IN THIS FIELD.
I EARNED MY BACHELOR'S DEGREE
IN CIVIL ENGINEERING AND MY
MASTER'S DEGREE IN
STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING.
MY ADVICE TO STUDENTS?
NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAMS.
>> I'M AARON YAZZIE.
I GREW UP IN HOLBROOK, ARIZONA,
A SMALL TOWN NEAR
THE NAVAJO NATION.
AS A KID, I PLAYED OUTSIDE IN
THE ROCKY DESERT USING MY
IMAGINATION TO INVENT
AND BUILD THINGS.
I GRADUATED FROM
STANFORD UNIVERSITY
WITH A DEGREE IN
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING.
I NOW WORK AT THE
NASA JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
WHERE I HELP DESIGN AND BUILD
MARS ROVERS AND LANDERS
THAT PLAY IN THE DESERT
JUST LIKE I USED TO.
FOR ALL YOU STUDENTS OUT THERE
WITH A BIG IMAGINATION,
YOU'RE ALREADY ON YOUR WAY
TO BECOMING A GREAT ENGINEER.
>> I'M NIKESHA DAVIS.
I'M ORIGINALLY FROM
THE WASHINGTON D.C. AREA.
MY LOVE FOR MATH AND SCIENCE
REALLY STEMMED FROM
NASA-SPONSORED PROGRAMS
I ATTENDED IN MIDDLE SCHOOL.
I HAVE COLLEGE DEGREES FROM
SPELMAN COLLEGE
AND THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA
IN HUNTSVILLE IN MATHEMATICS,
AEROSPACE ENGINEERING,
AND SYSTEMS ENGINEERING.
I WORK AS AN AEROSPACE ENGINEER
AT NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT
CENTER WHERE I DEVELOP
AND TEST HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE
FOR IMPORTANT CONTROL SYSTEMS
ON SPACECRAFTS.
MY ADVICE FOR STUDENTS IS
TO NEVER GIVE UP.
YOUR EFFORTS WILL DEFINITELY
PAY OFF IN THE END.
>> HI, I'M RAFAEL MERCADO
AND I'M FROM CLEVELAND, OHIO.
WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, I LOVED
TAKING THINGS APART
JUST TO SEE HOW THEY WORKED.
THAT LED ME TO EARNING MY
ASSOCIATE'S DEGREE IN
MANUFACTURING AND INDUSTRIAL
ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY.
I CURRENTLY WORK AT
NASA GLENN RESEARCH CENTER AS
AN INSTRUMENT MAKER APPRENTICE.
I MAKE AND INSTALL SENSORS
ON MODELS.
THIS HELPS ENGINEERS
AND RESEARCHERS VISUALIZE
WHAT'S HAPPENING TO THE HARDWARE
DURING A TEST.
MY ADVICE TO STUDENTS?
DON'T ALLOW ANYONE OR ANYTHING
TO PREVENT YOU FROM
ACHIEVING YOUR GOALS.
HARD WORK AND DEDICATION
CAN OPEN ALMOST ANY DOOR.
>> I'M MONICA GUZIK.
I'M FROM AVON, OHIO,
JUST OUTSIDE OF CLEVELAND.
I GRADUATED FROM ROSE-HULMAN
WITH A DEGREE IN
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
AND I NOW WORK AS A GAS
AND FLUIDS SYSTEMS ENGINEER AT
THE NASA GLENN RESEARCH CENTER,
WHERE I DESIGN AND DEVELOP NEW
TECHNOLOGIES FOR EVERYTHING
FROM CRYOGENICS TO FUEL CELLS
TO EXPERIMENTS ON
THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION.
I LOVE ENGINEERING,
BECAUSE IT LETS ME SOLVE
NEW AND CHALLENGING PROBLEMS
EVERY DAY.
AND MY ADVICE TO STUDENTS?
ALWAYS WORK HARD,
FOLLOW YOUR PASSION,
AND NEVER, EVER GIVE UP.
>> ONE MORE TIME!
MAKE SOME NOISE FOR YOUR
NASA ALL-STAR STEM TEAM!
[ MUSIC, CHEERING ]