Name of AAPI Figure	Kalpana Chawla
What is the person’s Asian heritage or ethnicity?	Indian-American
Area of Influence	Astronaut
Date of birth or time period	1962-2003
How did this individual make a contribution to their field or to society/culture at large?	In November, 1996, Kalpana Chawla was assigned as mission specialist and prime robotic arm operator on STS-87. In January 1998, she was assigned as crew representative for shuttle and station flight crew equipment, and subsequently served as lead for Astronaut Office’s Crew Systems and Habitability section. She flew on STS-87 (1997) and STS-107 (2003) and has logged 30 days, 14 hours and 54 minutes in space.
Why did you choose this person? What about their story speaks to you?	I chose to speak about Kalpana Chawla because she was a woman who went to space and broke a lot of boundaries.
Submitted by	Ishanvi Hedgire
Age	7
City, State	Lexington, MA