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MUSIC

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Phone Ring  - "Wanda Peters."

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I am the Assistant Division Chief for the

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Mechanical Systems Division at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

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When I was younger I never imagined that I would be working for an

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organization that is internationally known

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for its accomplishments.  Working at NASA

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in this circle of influence that I've had the

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privilege of being a part of - it's more

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than I've ever thought, that I've ever been able to dream of.

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"Hello... how are you...."

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The greatest barrier that I've experienced throughout

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my career is being first a minority and then a woman.

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You have to constantly prove yourself that

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you're not there as a part of a quota or token, that you're actually

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deserve to be involved and that you're

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competent and qualified for the work that you're performing.

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As a member of the Goddard community,

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I'm the African American Advisory Committee's Chair

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and I advocate for the diversity and inclusion of all

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on center.  Even though my function is to represent the African

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American constituency, anything that I present to

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the center is to the benefit of Goddard.

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I've learned several lessons

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during my life and one of the most important lessons

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that I've learned was to believe in myself.

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To believe that I can do something and regardless if I've made a mistake or

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didn't do it in a certain way, that it was OK,

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because I was being myself.

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I've learned to accept myself for who I am and just embrace

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being me.