Students at GRC reach for the stars when it comes to achievements, but freshman Gabriella Maldonado is taking things to new heights.
Maldonado attended SpaceTrek, a two-week program at Morehead State University that highlights aerospace for girls.
While attending the program, Maldonado gained a lot of knowledge on aerospace engineering, and also learned many things aside from aerospace.
“The program is really beneficial, even if you are not going into aerospace,” she said. “It can open a lot of doors and it helps you see what you want your career to be like in the future.”
This SpaceTrek program is specifically designed for high school girls who are curious about aerospace. Maldonado was one of 22 girls who had the opportunity to build a small satellite.
“There are not a lot of women in aerospace engineering so it gives us all an opportunity to meet girls that are like minded,” said Maldonado.
The GRC freshman’s interest in this topic began long before she was given the opportunity to attend the SpaceTrek program.
“My dad and I used to watch a lot of space movies together when I was younger,” said Maldonado. “We would stay out late at night and watch the asteroids and the stars.”
The support from both her family and the program has allowed Maldonado to flourish in this pathway.
“The program itself and all of the instructors are very welcoming”, said Maldonado. “They offer you a lot of help and support throughout the entire program.”
As a representative of SpaceTrek, Maldonado recently attended the Appalachian Space Technology & Research Advancement (ASTRA) Conference (ASTRA-CON) at Morehead. Here, she was able to speak to many people about SpaceTrek.
“Groups of students came from schools around Morehead,” said Maldonado. “I would walk them through our preparations to launch our satellite and how we learned so much in such a short amount of time.”
The program has given Maldonado more than education on aerospace. “My favorite part was probably getting to present at ASTRA-CON with my long distance friends that I met at SpaceTrek,” said Maldonado. “They live a few hours away so it was nice to reconnect with them again.”
This program is an amazing opportunity for high school girls. SpaceTrek applications are open until March 3, 2025. Additional information can be found on Morehead State University’s website.
