Sheyene Gerardi is a Venezuelan actress, model, and television host. She is the Lead of Robotics Outreach at NASA. Sheyene founded the Sheyene Institute and operates two philanthropic organizations through the Sheyene Gerardi Foundation. The Sheyene School, to address technological literacy. The Sheyene e-health, an electronic healthcare information delivery network for rare diseases, after becoming a survivor of an unclassifiable splenic hairy small B-Cell lymphoma non-Hodgkin, a rare cancer.. Sheyene is member of The International Political Science Association. She is working with governments introducing robotics education into low-resource communities or conflict areas, such as rural schools, refugee camps, non-formal school systems and prison system.
Early life and career
Her career as a professional model began in conjunction with her medical education; prior to attending university she represented her school in mathematics and chemistry competitions. Sheyene studied Medicine at the Universidad Central de Venezuela. She worked as a model part time and participated in the Miss Venezuela Pageant. During her time at the university, the school plunged into turmoil, reaching the verge of closing as students protested. Around that time, a TV producer discovered Sheyene, and she garnered a starring role on a popular soap opera series that was broadcast internationally. Sheyene is known for her work in more than 30 countries, including Russia, Germany, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, and Puerto Rico. Given her influence on the culture, a non-profit charity foundation in Barlovento, Venezuela —the Sheyene School—is named after her.
Entertainment
Gerardi has won the "2 de Oro" award, She has received the key of the city in Barlovento, the Premio Meridiano de Oro and the Imagen Awards. The actress has also credits in roles as a TV host. In 2016, Gerardi was named a Mogul Influencer in New York City. On March 09, 2020, Sheyene began hosting a TV Show documentary entitled "To the Moon and Back with Sheyene Gerardi” distributed through cable television, where Sheyene aims to educate about leading-edge technological developments. Sheyene is also executive producing this series.
NASA
Sheyene Gerardi, is working with NASA Kennedy Space CenterSwamp Works and the Florida Space Institute to teach Planetary engineering and creating Robotics Competitions for low-income children through Sheyene School. In 2018, Sheyene was appointed as the Lead for Robotics Outreach at NASA’s Center for Lunar and Asteroid Surface Science, The Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute and The Florida Space Institute network. She is working with governments introducing robotics education into low-resource communities or conflict areas, such as rural schools, refugee camps and non-formal school systems. The program is serving prison systems providing assistance with education to people who has been wrongfully convicted.
Sheyene Institute
After becoming involved with NASA Sheyene founded the Sheyene Institute, a company that works on technologies to mining resources on the Moon, Mars and asteroids. The institute conducts applied research and development in Autonomous Navigation Technologies.
Institutional affiliations
Sheyene is member of the American Political Science Association, member of the International Political Science Association and to the committee on professional ethics, rights, and freedoms. Gerardi is member of L'association française de science politique.
In 2006, her mother and father were killed in an automobile accident, leaving Sheyene with no living relatives. A year later, she received a diagnosis of advanced lymphoma stage IV, a very rare type of cancer with only 60 cases reported worldwide with no survivors. The cancer was spread throughout 85% of her body and doctors gave her three months to live. Sheyene was treated by Dr. Humberto Caldera, in Florida. During her chemotherapy treatments, Gerardi worked in two films in Mexico, first, starred in La virgen de la caridad del cobre. Six months later, in Santa Juanita de los lagos. Gerardi underwent three years of chemotherapy, she suffered no hair loss. Sheyene`s family has owned and operated mining business in Venezuela, since 1954. Sheyene Gerardi serves as CEO of the company after her parents passed away. Sheyene grew up an avid fan of racing, her father was a racecar driver in Venezuela; he had five consecutive wins before he died. Sheyene has spoken about her passion for sailing, she is a certified yacht captain and owns a yacht, named after her in Florida.
Philanthropy
Sheyene operates two philanthropic organizations through the Sheyene Gerardi Foundation. The Sheyene School, a non-profit branch of the Sheyene Institute, to address technological literacy in robotics and STEM related fields, for low-income children in underdeveloped regions; and Sheyene E-health, which provides free medical consultations via Internet, email and via phone for people suffering from rare diseases.
