What I Do I design/improve underground and overhead electrical systems. These systems range from serving residential to industrial customers.
Why Engineering? I chose engineering because I liked math and science, but mostly because I had a strong support system of family behind me.
School Days I attended West Virginia University Institute of Technology and graduated with two bachelor degrees. One is in electrical engineering and the other is in computer engineering.
My Day At Work On a normal basis I evaluate load studies, find ways to improve electrical systems to reduce outages for customers, and decide if industrial customers will overload some systems.
Proud Moments My career is only a couple years old but I was recently named the lead of a sustainability team of Appalachian Power engineers.
Challenges The largest challenges I faced was in college when some students looked down on my ability to learn due to my gender.
My Family My parents got married very young and neither have college degrees but we're very supportive. I have one younger brother who is going to school to become a trauma nurse. I'm married to a man who has always been supportive of my career goals.
Dreams and Goals My short-term goal is to become a supervisor in my group. My long-term goal is to possibly become a manager.
Inspiration My grandma and I were very close. She always told me I could do anything, no matter what.
Want to be an Engineer? If a young woman is considering engineering my advice would be to keep your head up no matter how difficult it is at times. Find some friends, 2 of my best friends are also women engineers and that helps when I'm having a bad day.
Hobbies I love to cook, garden, and tinker on cars. I have shelves of books so I can't pick a favorite.
Additional Thoughts My best memories from college were from joining IEEE(only club available at my school). I also suggest finding a mentor when entering the workforce.