Jose Hernandez Speaker Biography
Former NASA Astronaut & Inspiration for the Amazon Prime Film, A Million Miles Away
NASA engineer Jose Hernandez wanted to fly in space ever since he heard that the first Hispanic-American had been chosen to travel into space. “I was hoeing a row of sugar beets in a field near Stockton, Calif., and I heard on my transistor radio that Franklin Chang-Diaz had been selected for the Astronaut Corps,” says Hernandez, who was a senior in high school at the time. “I was already interested in science and engineering,” Hernandez remembers, “but that was the moment I said, ‘I want to fly in space.’ And that’s something I’ve been striving for each day since then.” That hard work paid off. He was selected to begin training as a mission specialist as part of the 2004 astronaut candidate class.
Migrant Farm-Worker
One of four children in a migrant farming family, Hernandez—who didn’t learn English until he was 12 years old—spent much of his childhood traveling between Mexico and southern California depending on the season, picking strawberries and cucumbers at farms along the route. After graduating high school in Stockton, Hernandez enrolled at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, where he earned a degree in electrical engineering and was awarded a full scholarship to the graduate program at the University of California in Santa Barbara, where he continued his engineering studies. In 1987, he accepted a full-time job with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory where he had worked as a co-op in college. While at Lawrence Livermore, Hernandez worked on signal and image processing applications in radar imaging, computed tomography, and acoustic imaging.
Inventor and Engineer
Later in his career, Hernandez worked on developing quantitative x-ray film imaging analysis techniques for the x-ray laser program. Hernandez applied these techniques in the medical physics arena and co-developed the first full-field digital mammography imaging system. This system has proven useful for detecting breast cancer at an earlier stage than present film/screen mammography techniques. Hernandez has won recognition awards for his work on this project. He has also worked in the international arena where he represented Lawrence Livermore and theU.S. Department of Energy on Russian nuclear non-proliferation issues. During the astronaut application process, Hernandez had to meet with a review board. That’s where he came face-to-face with his original inspiration: Franklin Chang-Diaz. “It was a strange place to find myself, being evaluated by the person who gave me the motivation to get there in the first place,” Hernandez says. “But I found that we actually had common experiences — a similar upbringing, the same language issues. That built up my confidence. Any barriers that existed, he had already hurdled them.” Hernandez smiles. “Now it’s my turn.”
Astronaut
Hernández was selected as part of the 19th class of astronauts in 2004. In 2006, José completed Astronaut Candidate Training and in 2009, he was a mission specialist on the STS-128 mission on board the Space Shuttle, Discovery.
CEO
Since leaving NASA, he served as the Executive Director of Strategic Operations at MEI Technologies in Texas. In 2012, he ran for the US House of Representatives in the 10th California Congressional District. CEO of Tierra Luna Engineering, LLC, José Hernández continues his long history in the field of engineering and space.
Award
Hernández recently received the 2016 National Hispanic Hero Award presented by the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute.
Jose Hernandez Speaking Topics
Reaching For Your Own Stars: A Recipe To Succeed In Life
Jose Hernandez's talk is an effective motivational talk where individuals leave so inspired, they re-evaluate and upgrade their personal and professional goals in life. José Hernández empowers attendees through his anecdotal stories of hard work and perseverance. He shares a simple yet effective recipe that serves as an effective tool in the empowerment process.
Entrepreneurship
Jose talks about his experiences as a businessman, from owning a restaurant to creating a successful aerospace consulting firm to being coming back to his roots as a vineyard farmer and developing his own line of wines.
Leadership
Jose discusses how he developed his leadership and communication skills both as a social advocate in various community-based organizations and through experiences as he moved up through middle/senior management positions at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and NASA.
Teamwork
In his keynote speech, Hernandez shares his personal experiences of how teamwork played a crucial role in his journey to space, and how it can help others overcome challenges and achieve their goals. He discusses the importance of collaboration, communication, and trust in building successful teams, and offers practical tips and strategies for fostering a culture of teamwork in any organization. Whether you are a leader looking to inspire and motivate your team, or an individual seeking to achieve your own personal goals, Hernandez's keynote on teamwork is sure to inspire and empower you to reach for the stars.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
This is a sensitivity training course where Jose points out that everyone has internal biases. Acknowledging and managing these biases not only allows us to treat everyone equally, but in an inclusive manner. In doing so, we can focus on individualistic needs. In a diverse workplace, differences exist, and people require support in different ways. Equity asks us to acknowledge that everyone has different needs, experiences, and opportunities.
Imposter Syndrome: How to Thrive in Today's Challenging Environment
This talks centers around the subject of common to high achievers, people who break barriers and/or are "first in their family to achieve." These achievements cause individuals to doubt their abilities to the point they feel like a fraud. It disproportionately affects people who break barriers and are one of the first in their families to have college graduate careers. They typically find it difficult to accept their accomplishments and many questions whether they're deserving of recognition and accolades. Jose not only talks about the subject, but also discuss methods he used to overcome such feelings.
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Jose Hernandez Speaker Testimonials
Jose!!! Your talk was AMAZING! I wish you could have seen all of the emojis that were flying during the livestream….Our kickoff event for Latinx History month was a huge success. All thanks to your enlightening words that inspired so many people out there!!!! THANK YOU!"
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