Ellen Ochoa Essay

Ellen Ochoa- Breaking Gender Barriers In Outer Space

Blasting off into space was once an all-male’s game. But on the heels of such trailblazers as Sally Ride, engineer and inventor Ellen Ochoa became part of growing breed of NASA female astronauts who have since helped change all that. Ellen Ochoa, a veteran astronaut, is the 11th director of the Johnson Space Center. She is JSC’s first Hispanic director, and its second female director. In 1993, she made history by becoming the first Hispanic woman from any country to travel in space. She would follow up this journey with three more space flights in 1994, 1999 and 2001, logging more than 700 hours in space. Despite being rejected two times from NASA’s Training Program,

She has made a difference in the world of astronauts and she is a perfect role model for the Hispanic community.When she couldn’t decide what career she wanted, she asked both her physics and her engineering professors. Her engineering teacher told her that engineering was too hard for a girl. Ellen’s physics teacher told her that physics would get her somewhere. Though her engineering teacher told her she was a girl and couldn’t do engineering, she followed her engineering dreams. Ellen gives good examples of telling people that even a girl can be anything she wants to be. Ellen is a hero, not just because she is the first Hispanic woman astronaut, not because she is a groundbreaker, not because she is admirable, but because she proved that women can do anything that they want to do. Women have the same opportunities that men have. All you have to do is follow your dreams. She broke through barriers with no hesitation and worked hard for what she wanted in life. Her accomplishments and awards speak for themselves and we are proud that she is representing the Hispanic community in such a great way. Ellen Ochoa went against the odds and succeeded, giving a prime example that anything you want in life is possible, and for that, Ellen Ochoa is a