Throughout my high school and junior college career, I was part of track and field where I competed in pole vault. This sport is quite special to me because it is not a sport where you are directly competing against others, but rather a sport in which you compete against yourself. That drive to push past my limits and pursue a better version of myself is why I hold those 5 years I competed so closely to my heart.That same drive is also what I bring to my academic and professional careers. I am constantly on the pursuit to learn and understand more of the topics that interest me. From space flight and satellites to looking up at starry nights, astronautics calls my name. For more information, feel free to reach out to me at erikdvaldez@gmail.com