I spent my lunch break making this. It was surprisingly the reminder I needed to keep going despite how hard things have been lately. I hope it encourages someone. You can overcome ๐ช๐พ (nothings wrong w a 3.4 GPA - I was just told it was too low for grad school and yet here I am!)
After 4 long years & at 21 years old, Iโm ready to graduate with my bachelors in aerospace engineering, concentration in astronautics and minor in computational mathematics. May 6th, Iโm coming for you! To God be the Glory.
Iโm shaking. Lil ole me is a NASA Space Technology Research Fellow. Last year I didnโt even apply because I just knew there was no way I could get it. Crazy things happen when you take a small step of faith! My God is absolutely incredible.
I am a BLACK WOMAN. I donโt matter because I build. I donโt matter because Iโm strong. I donโt matter because I have a degree. I donโt subscribe to the notion that I matter because of what I can offer. I matter because I a human being. Thatโs it.
#BlackLivesMatterRegardless
Wow. Iโm really out here studying for a final exam in quantum mechanics for my PhD program in aerospace engineering at Georgia Tech. I would have never thought I was smart enough for this. But here we are.
Got a call from my bf but when I said hello he wouldnโt answer. I overheard him talking to someone. My 1st instinct is to jump in the car and find him thinking he called me for safety bc he got pulled over. Iโm violently shaking and looking for him to find out he buttdialed me.
Students who went straight from undergrad to PhD programs with only a summer break in which you worked full time, how we feeling right now? Was that a bad idea or WHAT ๐คก
Today I made one of the most difficult decisions Iโve ever had to make. I had to say goodbye to my sweet, babygirl. My best friend, my daughter, my everything.
You probably donโt care and thatโs OK but Im kinda proud of myself for doing my first โrepairโ in the lab. I fixed the labs air compressor. I learned a ton in doing so. Hearing it kick on and operate successfully was soothing for my soul.
Iโll never forget failing a class for the first time. I genuinely thought my life was over. Now Iโm slated to take my PhD qualification exam in the same subject. Aerodynamics you thought you had me but Iโm coming for that NECK baby!
FIRST 4.0 EVER!!! And during one of the hardest semesters of my life ๐ญ in an aerospace engineering PhD program at a top school!!! BYEEEE getting drรถnk ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฅ
I have never had a 4.0. In College. Iโve been so close, too. I know it doesnโt matter like that but it is a personal goal of mine. Putting in the atmosphere that this semester will be my first 4.0. โจ
Todays Black @ NASA posts were so beautiful and inspiring. It had me reminiscing to my first NASA photos ๐ฅฒ and how some pics are still being used still 6 years later
Being comfortable enough to say โI donโt know, teach meโ is a life hack. It relieves me of the pressure to know it all. Even if someone is condescending to me, Iโm like w.e. - as long as Iโm learning Iโm winning. Your need to feel like youโre better than me is a personal problem.
The whole โhowโd you not know this, everyone knows thisโ crap literally kept me from asking questions in class for a while when in undergrad. I was always worried about being the dumbest in the room. It keeps so many out of STEAM. The whole point of science is to ask questions.
Today is another launch day. While Iโm excited, it was important to me that I shared this. Its not very well-written but I think it encapsulates my feelings right now. Happpy launch day.
Um so shout out to me. I did something I consider super brave today. I was totally honest with my mental health care provider! Iโve always held back in therapy due to concerns of hindering my future career (astronaut). But today I decided that my mental health matters more.
Hi new twitter fam! My name is Naia Butler-Craig! I have a BS in Aerospace Engineering from
@ERAU_Daytona
, current Aerospace Engineering PhD student
@GeorgiaTech
specializing in electric propulsion, NASA pathways intern
@NASAglenn
and GEM fellow
@LosAlamosNatLab
!
Just realized my โself-careโ activities arenโt actually self-care but avoidance and thatโs why Iโm never actually rejuvenated. Learning to do things for me that actually fill me up and not just distract me from reality.
I spent my 25th bday depressed and institutionalized. This one is personal.
All Glory to God for the opportunity to live another year and for keeping me.
This is 26.
All 4 Floyd Suspect murderers arrested. Great. Breonna Taylor case reopened. Splendid. But Iโm still looking at an exhaustive list of names who still deserve justice. So no, not satisfied. If only you would have listened to us before.
This WSJ debacle is why I go out of my way to call every woman, especially of color, with a PhD that I come across โDr.โ I do not care if weโre best friends, family etc. I know too many people ready to rob you of the title you worked so hard for. I will overcompensate for them.
Crashing the
#BlackInPhysicsRollCall
even though Iโm not a physicist yet!
Iโm a 2nd year PhD student studying aerospace engineering with a focus in electric propulsion (a form of plasma propulsion)! EP involves low temp plasma physics so call me an aspiring plasmaphysicist!
Envious of all the people who are motivated about science and the sharing of it right now. To those that are having trouble reconnecting to their passions right now, I see you and Iโm with you.
I have to remind myself how proud I was to earn this jacket and be part of a lab that does electric propulsion research - exactly what Iโve wanted to do since sophomore year of undergrad. I said I would do it and I did. No matter how tough this journey gets I will see it through.
Successful First Day Back at the Lab! Iโll be working as a systems integration and test engineer for a small hall-effect thruster called SKEP (Sub-Kilowatt Electric Propulsion). Thrusters of itโs kind will be applicable to CubeSat missions in the future!
The first black woman to earn a PhD in nuclear engineering just accepted my LinkedIn request ๐ญ๐ญ๐ญ Iโve been fangirling her all morning. She prob thinks Iโm a creep.
Something that I donโt think is well understood is that when someone says theyโre busy, theyโre not always talking about a full schedule. Sometimes theyโre talking about a full mind. Just cause your schedule is open doesnโt mean youโre free.
โSo yes, they let women do some things at NASA, Mr. Johnson. And it's not because we wear skirts. It's because we wear glasses. Have a good day.โ - Katherine Johnson (
@tarajiphenson
), Hidden Figure 2016
Iโm only gonna ask this once. But please donโt let me wake up to โBlack Women Will Save Usโ think pieces and articles about Stacey Abrams. Thatโs not what we need to take from this :) we are not your superheroes. Just follow her lead.
My
#InternationalWomeninEngineeringDay
this year is not about how happy I am to be a woman in the field. Unfortunately, the โwomen should dress modest so they arenโt sexually harassedโ discussion opened up an old wound. I have never really shared this publicly. TW: sexual assault
Naia Butler-Craig is a 1st year PhD student at Georgia Institute of Technology, studying Aerospace Engineering. She is a graduate research assistant & a GEM (Graduate Edu for Minorities) Fellow. She is a member of the High-Power Electric Propulsion Laboratory @ Georgia Tech.
Please stop sharing photos/videos of Black people being murdered. Please stop sharing photos/videos of Black people being murdered. Please stop sharing photos/videos of Black people being murdered. Please stop sharing photos/videos of Black people being murdered.
#BlackInAeroRollCall
my name is Naia Butler-Craig Iโm an aerospace engineering PhD student at Georgia Tech! My research lies in electric space propulsion devices and Iโm looking to optimize them for deep space exploration mission applications ๐ GO GO GO whoโs next!?
Imposters Syndrome will have you thinking your degree meant nothing, your accomplishments meant nothing, and the people who believe in you for good reason are all just sadly mistaken.
Say hi to a 2nd year AE PhD student ๐ Here are my academic highlights
Helped fire my first ion thruster (RIT-10)
Earned my dream fellowship
Aimed for a 4.0, fell short twice (3.0 first semester and 3.5 second semester) and I got over it. Progress > Perfection
Over the years, African Americans have paved the way for space exploration. ๐ In honor of
#BlackHistoryMonth
, join us as we celebrate their contributions to our mission of reaching new heights and revealing the unknown for the benefit of humankind. Watch:
Itโs Juneteenth! Follow and amplify a Black scientist today! ๐โจ hereโs a great place to start and also get educated on Terraforming and the ethics of it!
So itโs time to talk about terraforming Mars. You may have heard about this in movies, but how would we really do it? Iโm going to talk about what terraforming is, why and how we would terraform Mars, the issues it consists of, and my own thoughts on the subject.
#scicomm
(1/22)
Iโm getting so much better at decoupling my self-worth and my academic success! I got the denial email from Ford Fellowship and I was disappointed but moved on and had a great rest of my day. Iโve never been able to do that.
Thread Alert: This is may stir some controversy but I think there really needs to be a conversation about the over-utilization of black scholars for outreach events/efforts (specifically STEM outreach).
Supporting my amazing friends during
#BlackBirdersWeek
! They have inspired me to become more enthusiastic about nature around me. So hereโs to my first time hiking!
#BlackInNature
! Make sure to participate and amplify the
#blackbirders
on your TL! Follow
@BlackAFinSTEM
for more!
Finally ready for cathode testing this semester. Got the mock anode constructed, repairs completed, and itโs all ready to be wired up. Fingers crossed for smooth sailing, lots of learning, and pretty blue light ๐๐๐! (Old pic)
Just found out I got an A in the one subject area I failed and had to retake in undergrad.. advanced aerodynamics. Despite earning an A the second time i took it, I was scared to take the grad level course. Lol You thought you had me girl. Canโt beat a person who wonโt quit ๐คช
Unpopular opinion: I wish we would leave colonization on Earth. I hate that we look at Mars as something else to OWN. Space should humble you. Itโs not for colonization. Not another place we can go spray the โHumans Waz Hereโ tag on and leave it shambles like weโre leaving Earth
@OrangePaulp
I aspire to this level of calm โlet me get you together right quickโ attitude. She snatched her life up without changing her facial expression. Royalty.
This is not the first time this has happened. The last time was with my dad. I thought he was calling so I could listen to his encounter with the police and come help him. I rush over to his house to find him sleep in the bed. This is traumatic.