She is taking a step closer to her dream of becoming a software engineer to help NASA get people to Mars. It took the 12-year-old girl two applications to receive a scholarship to go to the Space Academy Robotics at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Jayda’s mother, Anne Jeannette Washington Collins, said her daughter is inspiring. She is always learning from her little girl, whose bedroom is full of encouraging quotes. “She has really taught me what the words ‘faith’ and 'miracles’ put together can bring," the proud mother said.