Courtesy: Courtney Crooks

Universities Space Research Association (USRA) Houston

May 2008

Universities Space Research Association (USRA) is committed to supporting NASA’s Vision for Space Exploration by developing the critical pool of talented and diverse people that will make up NASA’s 2020 workforce.  The Career Exploration Program, in conjunction with NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) and USRA’s Education Programs Office, allows students to pipeline through educational work-study experiences at NASA and into careers that benefit the future of space exploration. 

Adolfo Cortez in the Super Guppy Aircraft at Ellington Field in 2005, during his senior year in high school. Photo courtesy of NASA.

College student Adolfo Cortez is just one shining example of the program’s success.  Adolfo was selected to participate in the work study program in 2005, during his senior year in high school. Excited about the opportunity to work at NASA, Adolfo entered the program planning to pursue a degree in business upon graduation.  However, a tour of JSC’s Mission Control Center  inspired him to consider a different career path. 

Motivated by the excitement and environment of NASA, Adolfo decided to major in engineering, with the goal of some day working in Mission Control.  Adolfo graduated with honors from Cesar Chavez High School and earned a full-tuition Computer Science, Engineering and Mathematics Scholarship (CSEMS) to attend San Jacinto College, where he began his pursuit of an engineering degree.

Adolfo pipelined through USRA’s Career Exploration Program over the next two years while attending San Jacinto College.  He gained valuable work experience in three JSC organizations, including the Aircraft Operations Division at NASA’s Ellington Field, the Logistics and Property Office, and Space Shuttle Procurement.  It was this work experience, says Adolfo, that made him an eligible candidate for the Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) scholarship, which he applied for in the fall of 2007.

The SMART award, established by the Department of Defense (DoD), supports undergraduate and graduate students who are pursuing degrees in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines.  SMART award recipients receive a full tuition scholarship, a $22,000 - $39,000 annual stipend, paid summer internships, and employment placement after graduation. 

Adolfo’s hard work and dedication at school and in his job paid off; in the spring of 2008, Adolfo was awarded a SMART scholarship.  Adolfo will complete his Electrical Engineering degree at Texas A&M University and has received summer internships and employment placement at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma.

Adolfo Cortez at NASA’s Mission Control Center, where he was inspired to pursue a career at NASA.Photo courtesy of NASA.

“My experience in the Career Exploration Program has been outstanding,” says Adolfo.  Besides providing valuable work experience, the CEP program opened doors in education that Adolfo never imagined.  In addition to the CSEMS and SMART scholarships, Adolfo also received the Texas Space Grant Consortium Scholarship (TSGC) and the Houston Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (H-LSAMP) award.  “Without the CEP program,” says Adolfo, “I would never have known about these scholarship opportunities and would not have been able to attend college.” 

Adolfo is the first in his family to earn a high school diploma and will be the first to graduate with a college degree.  His job at NASA during high school was his first job experience, and his continued work experience through USRA work study programs has dramatically shaped his education and career goals. 

As for those future career goals, Adolfo has high hopes to impact the future of space exploration.  Once he completes his education, Adolfo plans to move back to Houston and pursue his new dream of becoming a NASA astronaut.