On Thursday, November 16th, about 50 CHS/MST students had the opportunity to hear astronaut and CHS class of 77 grad Dr. Michael Barratt speak to regional MST students at an event hosted by Washington State University Vancouver. Barratt wowed the audience with insights about the path he took to get, quite literally, into space!
Here are some of the paraphrased quotes gleaned from Dr. Barratt’s talk:
- Hard work is more important than being a genius…out of nearly 50 astronauts he was referring to, he called two of them geniuses…the rest are hard-working folks who love to learn and are adaptable to adverse and varying environments.
- The international teamwork that started in the early 90’s and has continued to present day in space…it’s very cool.
- Some students ask, “When/where will I ever use this?”, but he says that’s the wrong question. He encouraged students to learn as much as they possibly can and then ask/answer, “How can I use this?”
- Follow your interests…don’t focus on a certain destination.
Thank you for inspiring us, Dr. Barratt. Roll ‘Makers!
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