Eddie is a third-year aerospace engineering student at Purdue University and has an upcoming internship at SpaceX. On campus, he’s an active member of AEPi and part of the Purdue Space Program, working on a liquid rocket project aimed at reaching 65,000 feet. This summer, he’s interning at SpaceX’s test facility in Texas, contributing to rocket engine testing. Eddie’s journey is fueled by his lifelong fascination with space and his drive to push the boundaries of exploration.
What are you involved with right now at Purdue?
During the school year, I’m active in one of the Jewish fraternities on campus, AEPi. I live in the house with all the other Jewish guys on campus. We go to Chabad and Hillel, whichever one is hosting Shabbat, whichever week.
Additionally, Purdue has a big swath of rocketry teams called PSP or Purdue Space Program. The last two semesters I was on one of their rocket teams working to make a 10 to 12-foot liquid rocket that we are going to launch out in the middle of the desert to try and hit a certain altitude. We haven’t launched the rocket yet. We’re still in the design and test phase. Once everything is all assembled at the end of next semester they’re going to drive down there and go and launch it.
There’s a foundation that partnered with us and said if we hit a certain altitude target of 65,000 feet, then they’ll give us a big donation.
What are you most proud of during your tenure so far at Purdue?
All the learning that I’ve been able to do while I’m here. There are some days where I’ll leave a certain classroom and just kind of be in awe of how I actually understood all of that and think that a year ago or even six months ago, it would have seemed like complete gibberish.
Do you have a favorite class or have you had a favorite class in your tenure there?
It’s between two different classes I took last semester: One of them is called Control Systems, which is all the math for how you program something that’s flying. The other one was Dynamics and Vibrations Analysis, which was a physics class in describing with math how something is moving, and then how to use those equations to your benefit in the design process.
There are some days where I’ll leave a certain classroom and just kind of be in awe of how I actually understood all of that and think that a year ago or even six months ago, it would have seemed like complete gibberish.
Tell us about your upcoming summer internship:
So this summer I’m interning at SpaceX’s test facility in McGregor, Texas. It’s about 20 minutes southwest of Waco. Pretty much every engine that flies on one of their rockets from South Texas or from Florida goes to this facility after it’s been manufactured, and they test it beforehand to make sure it’s going to work. They’ve got these giant test stands, where you strap this rocket engine to it, put some fuel in, and shoot it off for a small amount of time with sensors hooked up to it that tell you how it’s performing.
I’m interning on the test engineering team. I’m not exactly a hundred percent sure what my specific role will be, but it will be something bouncing between designing the tests that they’re going to run or getting to operate the tests, looking at the data that they get and drawing conclusions.
What are some of your goals for the next few years?
So I’ve been accepted to a 5-year combined Master’s and bachelor’s program for aerospace engineering, and my current goal is to find a professor to do a thesis with.
After that, there’s like a big crossroads of “Do I go into industry and work at a company or government agency for a certain amount of time?” or “Do I want to stay for more time and pursue a PhD?”
I’m pretty certain either way I will eventually get a doctorate. But I’ve heard a lot of people say that it’s good to go work in industry for a little bit to make sure you’re really into this thing before you spend another four years becoming an expert on it.
What inspired you to get into aerospace engineering in the first place?
I’ve just always thought that space was the coolest thing ever. It started out with straight-up astronomy. I thought planets were awesome. You look at the night sky and see all the stars and then someone tells you that we’ve been out there. We’re up there right now. That’s just insane.
It’s kind of hard as a six-year-old not to love that. And whatever six-year-old me was onto, I am still onto that because I’ve got the same interest now. Literally my entire life has always been, “I want to work on something that goes to space.”
When you think back about your AJA experience, were there any favorite assignments or learning experiences that you particularly enjoyed?
My favorite learning experience was in fifth grade and we got to go to Green Gate Farms. We would go as a class and help out on this farm for most of the day, and I liked it so much. It ended up being my bar mitzvah project to work more on that farm, and it was so different from anything I’d ever done.
Mrs. Hidalgo knew exactly what she was doing. It was an awesome experience. It opened my eyes to just all the different ways the world can work and the different ways people live.
The other thing is just the culture that y’all have there and the community at AJA was unlike any academic experience I’ve had since. I had the same core group of friends. I love being here at Purdue. I loved LASA, but I remember it being very comforting being at AJA when you show up for the first day of school of whatever grade and it’s the same people that you’ve been friends with for years.
It’s a place where I can come back and there are still all these teachers that remember my name, remember all the stuff I’m into, and want to catch up with me. You don’t get that anywhere else. That kind of sense of community was definitely a thing that I loved.
[AJA] is a place where I can come back and there are still all these teachers that remember my name, remember all the stuff I’m into, and want to catch up with me. You don’t get that anywhere else. That kind of sense of community was definitely a thing that I loved.
How well prepared did you feel when you got to LASA?
I felt very, very prepared. I don’t want to say more than others, but I would struggle to think of a time in high school where I kind of didn’t have a sense of how to succeed.
In terms of organizational skills, and prioritizing assignments, and being able to build a schedule for yourself outside of school — that all kind of draws their roots from AJA. All the people I knew who went to AJA and then to LASA had amazing experiences.
What word or two of advice would you give to our graduating eighth graders?
I’d say the biggest thing I still tell myself all the time is, “Don’t ever stop dreaming.” Don’t be scared of growing up — do grow up. Growing up is great. There’s so much more stuff you can do, but don’t ever lose that inner childish spirit of wanting to try new things, wanting to go out and do things just because. There’s a reason you wanted to be a certain thing when you were a kid, right?
And maybe you’ve changed your mind. It’s totally fine to change your mind, but if you don’t, then go all out and chase your dreams because they’re only your dreams. No one else is going to chase them for you.
