NewzVille Desk
“I started manifesting it, thinking about it every day as I drove by. When I started looking for a new job, I saw an opening and decided to apply,” Madhavi Latha Balijepalle says her inspirational journey who works as a senior database administrator working at the Airspace Operations Laboratory (AOL) at NASA Ames.
While Balijepalle passes through NASA Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley, she set a new career goal to work for NASA. After Eight and half years, she supports the researchers and developers who research next-generation solutions to advance aircraft technology and air traffic management at NASA.
M L Balijepalle grew up in a small town in India’s southern part, studying electrical engineering in college and establishing a career in information technology, working in C++ and Python.
After marriage only they were planning to settle in America as her husband got a job opportunity.
“I never planned to move to America,” said Balijepalle. “It was not easy to come here, even though my husband had a job. I stayed in India for almost nine months, before he found a different job that would help us with my visa and documentation.”
After settling into her new country, growing her family, and developing in her new career, Balijepalle got the spark for her dream job at NASA. She and her younger daughter, a space fan, enjoyed talking about the agency’s work in space, and when a Linux administrator position opened up, she jumped to grab the chance.
Initially Balijepalle was responsible for managing the lab’s Linux servers and applications. Today, she also supports researchers and developers with development, automation, and deployment of their work at AOL.
“Latha is the lifeblood of the lab, without her unwavering dedication to making sure our systems are safe, secure, up to date, and running smoothly, we would not be able to do what we do in the lab.”said Jeff Homola, Co-lead of the Airspace Operations Laboratory at NASA Ames.
One of Balijepalle’s proudest achievements during her NASA career is her language skills. She spoke Telugu and Hindi, when growing up and learned English, but communication was still a challenge when she arrived at NASA.
“I spoke English when I came to America, but not as well, and not using the technical language we use at NASA,” said Balijepalle. “I’m proud that I’ve improved my communications skills.”
How the daily commute Changed her life, she proudly says “I wasn’t a risk taker, I didn’t think about stepping outside my comfort zone, but as I drove by NASA Ames each day, I started to think about astronauts. They step outside their comfort zone and leave the planet, so maybe I could take a risk, too.”
For those who want to try to reach the goal Blijepalle says “Start thinking about it and manifesting your dream. Maybe it will come true, and maybe it won’t, but you might as well try.”
