0:59
- living
- April 12, 2021
12-year-old genius wants to be a NASA engineer
Alena Wicker will be attending college this May.
Video by Naomi Shah
0:59
\"She said, 'Mom, I want to create this culture of Brown girls in STEM, because it's this whole gap, and I just want to do something,'\" McQuarter said of her daughter's motivation.
Alena came up with the entire business plan for BSG on her own and contacted people who could assist with various aspects of its creation, her mom said. From graphic designers to larger funding requests and public relations, it was all her.
\"She actually did all the legwork, not me. I just kind of sat in the background, and I got the fun part of writing the checks,\" McQuarter laughed.
In addition to college, her career goals and BSG, Alena is learning Spanish and Arabic. A big thing that both mom and daughter are keen on is experiences, they said, and they love to travel as a result. Alena has even done world schooling while living abroad in Amman, Jordan.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/GMA/02-12-year-old-nasa-02-ht-iwb-210409_1617975537410_hpEmbed_2x3_384.jpg\")
One of Alena's next projects is a children's book titled \"Brainiac World.\" The name comes from what kids teased her with when she was younger, and she said it's her way of taking the word back and making it into something positive.
She's also working on a podcast, which will release its first episode in a couple weeks.
\"My podcast is to encourage girls in STEM by bringing other women and girls of STEM to ask and answer questions,\" Alena said.
One of the people she hopes to speak to on her podcast is Dr. Mae Jemison -- who made history as the first Black female astronaut -- to \"see her view of what it was like\" going to space.
Of other future plans, both Alena and McQuarter said they can't reveal too much, but they did tease that Alena has been contacted by NASA.
It's apparent that Alena is a prodigy, but she's still a kid who likes doing kid things such as hanging out with her friends, going to the mall, watching movies and TV, singing, and doing track and field.
Although McQuarter places importance on nurturing her daughter's gifts, she said she makes sure to keep her grounded by having her participate in activities with kids her own age.
Alena's fame has risen as news of her spreads, but nothing has changed for her and her family.
\"She's like the goofy kid in the family,\" McQuarter said. \"She's just Alena to us.\"
Alena acknowledged that the journey she's on is challenging, but she is excited nonetheless.
\"All my life, people are trying to hold me down because of my age,\" she said.
The advice she'd give to other people like her she attributes to what a postal worker once told her: \"We're in a new year, in a new season, and no one can hold us down anymore. So you can keep your feet on the ground, but you can continue to reach for the stars.\"
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