Posted on Feb 27, 2009 11:49:57 PM | NASA/Seventeen Co-op | 4 Comments   

Starting off on a personal note and ending with a recap on the amazing 3rd NASA Day   Wow…it’s over but not really! Today was my last day at NASA JSC. Today’s feelings are so different from the days before because I am looking at it from a reflective point of view and when doing this I can’t help but to be taken back by it all! Winning the NASA dream experience has really been the most amazing thing of my life! This trip has truly changed my life! Saying these words and just thinking about it makes me want to cry because I am so happy and thankful for my experience! The people who put this trip together are truly amazing and I am just so thankful for their hard work and determination in making this trip such a successful event! Not only was I inspired by this trip but it really was a beautiful thing to see how this trip inspired my students as well! Each day I was able to see how this experience molded my students Nicole (my first biology student whom I taught 2 years ago) and Ciara my earth space science honors students whom I currently teach). Seeing how they changed was such a treat as an educator but especially as their teacher in particular. Before the trip the girls’ definitely had a strong interest in science and very much enjoyed space science but after this I believe it evolved from an interest into a passion! Being apart of this and getting to see how this trip changed them is something I will never forget and I am so thankful to have been apart of this moment in time. Their transformations also make it so that I am now not alone…. Before this trip to NASA I must admit that I already was a full blown Space/NASA fanatic! As a teacher students often find it funny how I am so inspired by NASA and am so excited to teach about space in my classes. Being an astronaut is something I have dreamed of all my life and often been teased for having such high aspiration but that has never let me down.  So to get back to the story line I myself already loved space and therefore did not anticipate how much I would still be affected by the NASA experience. I knew I would love it but did not realize how much it would change me as well! I learned so much about how NASA works and functions and getting to meet the amazing people that work at NASA really inspired me and refueled my dreams and desires of wanting to become an astronaut! Although it came as a big surprise to many to learn that the teacher also wanted to do something related to space they quickly became encouraging as well! Some astronauts I met like Karen and Dottie took out the time to tell me how I could make my dreams come true as well! People were encouraging and that made all the differences. I know the road ahead of me is long I know that in addition to teaching (which I love as well) one day I will get to work for the fabulous NASA… a place which I leaned is so much more than astronauts and engineers… it really is a microcosm…it’s own efficient world with employees who support one another and really love their job. It seems that NASA takes good care of their employees by providing them flexible schedules and many opportunities to make heath a priority in their life by providing much work out opportunities. NASA really is an amazing place and the Johnson Space Center is one of the best places in the world! So…like I said, I always knew I wanted to go to NASA but now I found out what a great place is to work at as well!   Being an astronaut one day will give me the opportunity to have a larger classroom because I will get an opportunity to reach even more students because I will travel to schools and do anything and everything to do my part in inspiring future generations to work for NASA!   About the series of today’s event… to be continued…

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