Being a first generation student, Danelle Lazcano-Concelman has navigated through college with the help of university resources, including her advisors. With their guidance and her unwavering skills and motivation, she landed her first internship with NASA. “When NASA was recruiting at the Engineering Career Fair, I was determined to do my absolute best to leave a lasting impression,” Lazcano-Concelman recalled.

At the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, she was tasked with redesigning the Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) valve aboard the International Space Station. The ISS uses the CDRA Valve to direct air through the assembly which provides oxygen back to the cabin. She was also involved with the preliminary design of the De-Orbit Stage Solid Rocket Motor for the Europa Mission which will eventually voyage to Jupiter’s moon.

“Now that I am back in school, I am looking forward to getting through the hardest year of engineering; junior year,” Lazcano-Concelman said. With industry experience under her belt, she is more confident than ever in the field she has chosen, and hopes to eventually pursue a master’s degree in aerospace. “My time spent at NASA was almost like a window into my future where I saw exactly how my efforts in undergrad were used in the real world.”