On April 8, 1993, Ellen Ochoa was the first Hispanic woman to go into space. Ellen Ochoa was born May 10, 1958 in Los Angeles, California. She calls La Mesa, California her hometown. She is the third of five children, three brothers and one sister. When she was in her teens her parents got a divorce. Her mom raised five kids by herself, and she still took college courses in her spare time.
Ellen Ochoa attended to Grossmont High School where she found her love for the sciences. She graduated from high school in 1975 as valedictorian. Earning a four year scholarship to Stanford, she wanted to stay close to family. So she attended college at San Diego State earning a Bachelor of Science degree in 1980. Although her Engineer professor didn 't think she could go anywhere with engineering because she was
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Ochoa has earned many awards. NASA has awarded her with an Exceptional Service Medal in 1997, the Outstanding Leadership Medal 1995, Space Flight Medals in 1993, 1994, 1999, and 2002 and many others. She has also been awarded many Hispanic awards to include the Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award. She also has many schools named after her. The Ellen Ochoa Middle school in Pasco, Washington, the Ellen Ochoa Learning center in Cudahy, California, the Amino Ellen Ochoa Charter Middle School in Los Angeles to name a few,
I find Dr. Ellen Ochoa very inspiring. She is an Hispanic woman in a male dominated field. Dr. Ochoa values a good education and continued learning. She was determined to succeed and achieve her goals. She was told she wouldn 't be able to do anything with science because she was a women and then she went to space! She continues to inspire others by speaking to schools and giving back to her community.
Today, Dr. Ellen Ochoa currently serves as the director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. She is the first Hispanic to serve in this role and the second woman. Dr. Ochoa is married to Coe Miles, a property attorney and they have two