Diana Trujillo Pomerantz
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Pasadena, CA USA
"Community college made me believe that I could do it. It’s not going to be easy, but nothing worth doing is."
Career Roadmap
Diana's work combines: Science, Engineering, and Accomplishing Goals
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
You have to remember your purpose and what kind of impact you want to make in the world. That will keep you on the path.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Associate's Degree
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering, General
Miami Dade College
Bachelor's Degree
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering, General
University of Maryland-Baltimore County
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
Born and raised in Colombia—says it was a “toxic environment” and that she used to worry about whether she would make it home at night.
2.
Grew up watching "I Dream of Jeannie"—was inspired by the characters working at NASA and used to dream of working there one day.
3.
Leaving her family behind, she came to the U.S. when she was 17 with $300 in her pocket and didn’t speak any English.
4.
She worked four jobs, barely had money to eat, and lived out of her car, but she would never miss school—she knew that with an education she would be unstoppable.
5.
Says that her decision to go to community college set her up for success—the small classes, attentive professors, low cost, and diversity, made her feel comfortable and believe that she could do it.
6.
Picked her aerospace engineering major based on researching the backgrounds of female astronauts—admits that she had no idea what aerospace engineering was.
7.
She now leads the team at NASA’s JPL in charge of the Mars Curiosity rover, a vehicle designed to study the Martian climate and geology in order to prepare for human exploration.
8.
Says that “you have to keep pushing forward” and respect what everyone behind you has done and sacrificed in order for you to get to where you are.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Myself:
Maybe I shouldn't go to school. I could just start working more hours instead so that I can afford other things.
How I responded:
You have to remember your purpose and what kind of impact you want to make in the world. That will keep you on the path.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
I came to the US when I was 17 with $300 and spoke no English and had no idea what I was going to do.
There was a time when I was working four jobs to help pay for classes, but barely making enough to eat, and living out of my car.
I grew up in Colombia during a rough time in it's history. It was a very dangerous place to grow up and I was always afraid of whether or not I would make it home at night.