Catalina Reinhart-Diaz

A leader and inspiration for expanding the boundaries of possibility: Cat Reinhart-Diaz, said her nominator, is a vision of “a student exploring and enjoying all aspects of student life, remaining curious about who they are and who they may become.”

A junior majoring in Industrial and Systems Engineering with a minor in Human-Computer Interaction, Cat said, “My passions are space and systems engineering. Ever since I was little, building houses out of Lincoln logs, I have always been interested in designing things. As an Industrial and Systems engineer, I am passionate about finding optimal solutions to all kinds of problems.”

She has served her community of female engineers in the Hypatia living learning community as a teaching assistant, mentor, service learning committee liaison, and a residential well-being student leader.

Cat is respected as a reliable source of support and she encourages others' curiosity, said her nominator. “Cat’s programs foster a sense of belonging and give others the space to be curious and learn about the ways we are both similar and different from one another.”

Cat served as a Range Engineering intern at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, a leader for rocket launches in the United States and the world. “Working with engineers from NASA, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and SpaceX was a dream come true,” she said.

Cat developed and installed new software to train onboarding lieutenants for range safety and surveillance that is still used there today.

That achievement sparked her passion and interest in space design, leading her to join the NASA Student Launch Initiative Design Team, where she serves as Team Manager for a group of forty engineers.

Cat said, “There is nothing that stops me from exploring further, to change myself for the better, to learn as much as I can.”

She takes inspiration from her mother, who Cat said “has always been there for me and is always pushing me to be the best that I can be. I am so proud to have had someone so supportive and loving there for me throughout my life.”

Cat is on trajectory for an accelerated master's degree in human factors within Industrial and Systems Engineering here at Virginia Tech and for a career in Space Field Design.

It is my pleasure to present to Catalina Reinhart-Diaz the Aspire! Award for COMMIT TO UNWAVERING CURIOSITY.