Corey Gray

"Science communication and outreach has been a struggle. At first it was tough because I didn't want to do it at all! I am a shy person by nature and would freak when I was asked to present or talk to visitors at the site. Lately, now it is a struggle to shut me up! Ha! It is hard to say no to requests for outreach work, but this is something I'm learning to do---or basically, learning to just be selective and learning to find a balance. Something I've really been proud of is when I joined the LIGO outreach team and suggested we get my mother Sharon Yellowfly to translate our GW150914 press release into an Indigenous language (Blackfoot). I am SOO proud of that---for many reasons. I didn't think much of it at the time, but when does someone say they get to work with their mother AND help contribute to an exercise of Indigenous language preservation?! My mother has translated most of the detection press releases, and many people in Blackfoot country are proud of her work---especially me! In 2018, I had the honor of giving a presentation with my mother at an Indigenous language conference in southern Alberta where we talked about LIGO and her translations. I am very proud of any outreach/science communication opportunity which allows me to share the science of LIGO with underrepresented groups--especially Native American communities. What I really love about it is getting the opportunity to show Native kids I am just like them. My goal is always to inspire them to become interested in science and to show if I can do it, they totally can. If I can inspire just one Native kid to be a scientist, it's a success!"

Corey Gray joined Caltech and LIGO in 1998 and is now the Lead Operator at the LIGO Hanford Observatory. Corey likes to do installation work when it arises, and lately outreach and science communication has become a part of his work and personal time. Corey is also a member of the Siksika Nation (Northern Blackfoot). In his free time, Corey likes hiking and backpacking in the beautiful Pacific Northwest (over 200 miles in 2018!), salsa dancing, traveling, watching movies, and fly fishing. You can follow Corey on Facebook (@coreygray), Twitter (@QuantumOfSalsa), and Instagram (@corey_m_gray).