I think Ellen is a hero because she is smart and also she is the  girl who got the highest grades. In the story it says that  she can be anything she want to be ,also in the story it says that Ellen was disappointed that she was not accepted in the astronauts program. In the story it says that her mom said to reach for the stars.This reminds me of when I had the highest grades in my classes just like Ellen got the  highest grades in all her classes. Author wrote this story to inform us about why Ellen is a hero. You have read why Ellen is my hero.