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OCTC Student Making a Return Trip To NASA

Kiean Washington Selected for Internship Program

by Andrea Borregard

Owensboro, KY (11/15/2019) — Owensboro Community & Technical College (OCTC) student Kiean Washington is heading back to NASA for an internship. Washington has been selected to participate in NASA's Office of STEM Engagement Matrix Intern Project at the Kennedy Space Center this spring and summer. The internship is designed to support multiple ongoing projects with the Office of STEM Engagement. The spring focus is on the NextGEN STEM Commercial Crew Project, a joint initiative with Boeing and Space X to design, develop, and test systems to send astronauts to the Space Station. In the summer, Wahington's internship will focus on the Lunabotics Competition - a full-on engineering exercise where students receive practical experience in the full engineering lifecycle process from concept development to system closeout.

Washington says he lives by the philosophy that it is better to try and fail than to never try at all. He encourages other OCTC students to do the same. He commented, "You don't always have to be exemplary to get where you want to go. You just have to be determined and willing to try. When I thought about the ideal student NASA would want, it definitely wasn't me. But I still got in."

This is Washington's third collaboration with NASA. In June 2019, he participated in the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) program. NCAS provides participants with an authentic NASA experience and encourages them to pursue a NASA-related field or career. He returned to the Kennedy Space Center in October 2019 to serve as a student assistant with NCAS. Wahington's participation in these opportunities helped him secure his upcoming internship.

Washington completed OCTC's Tech X program in the fall of 2018 and is currently working on an Associate in Science degree. He credits OCTC with giving him the opportunity and ability to grow both personally and professionally. He said, "The people here make this place so much more than just a 'school.' I knew I could learn. I just needed the opportunity to do so. OCTC allowed me to get the hands-on experience that I didn't have before." Upon completion of his associate degree, Washinton plans to transfer to Western Kentucky University to pursue a degree in Physics.

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Owensboro Community & Technical College is one of the sixteen community and technical colleges that make up the Kentucky Community & Technical College System. OCTC serves the KY counties of Daviess, Hancock, Ohio and McLean. OCTC has three campuses in Daviess County and a Center and Annex in Hancock County. OCTC strives to serve the communities in the service area by providing associate degree education for transfer, state of the art technical education for students focusing on entering the workforce, customized business and industry solutions through the Workforce Solutions division, and adult education and business and industry testing through the SkillTrain unit.

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The Kentucky Community and Technical College System is the Commonwealth's largest postsecondary institution with 16 colleges and more than 70 campuses. We also are Kentucky's largest provider of workforce training and online education. Through partnerships with business and industry, we align our programs to meet the needs of local employers. We help students fulfill their dreams of creating a better life through programs that lead directly to jobs or help them transfer to one of our four-year partners.

Connect with OCTC: Owensboro.kctcs | Facebook.com/owensboroctc | Twitter@OCTC_Tweets | Instagram OwensboroCTC

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