Tag Archives: erau

The “in-between” Time

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When you have an internship in the Summer, it usually starts soon after your Spring semester classes end. However, the time in between these things is often forgotten even though, at least in my opinion from my own experiences, it is very important.

This year I took about 2.5 weeks “off” between these things. Many things happened during this time including packing up my dorm, moving out of my dorm, putting boxes at home, unpacking some, repacking suitcases for the Summer, remotely finishing up some research work, and then visiting some family for 10 days in Hawaii and California.

During previous Summers, my “in-between” time consisted of around 24-48 hours to pack, unpack, and move around before work. Not only was this a bit stressful, but I also found it incredibly useful to take a break between school and internship work. As a ‘rocket nerd,’ I love my school work and internship work but quickly figured out that lack of breaks (even tiny ones) can lead up to a larger feeling of burnout at a later point. Having the time to move out, pack/unpack things, and spend time with friends/family can give a certain part of your brain a relaxing time to focus on different types of things which will actually help you better function at work and look forward to the next semester even more. It is also nice to have at least a day or two when you move into your internship home to get settled in, organize, buy groceries, and more so that after work you can work on other things, call family/friends, participate in hobbies, socialize, or even just relax after a productive day.

Overall, this “in-between” time, although often overlooked, is essential to success in your life and career. It should be cherished and planned out well. This Summer is the first one in which I truly did this, and I can already see how much it has helped. I’ll leave you all with some pretty pictures from my family travels during my own “in-between” time and next time start to go into more about my internship! Happy Summer and safe travels!!

One picture taken while driving around Oahu.
Another picture taken while driving around Oahu.
I found a stick fishing pole among the fancy ones!

End of Junior Year!

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The Spring 2023 semester and my junior year has officially ended! A lot happened this semester, so I thought that I would summarize it here.

I took a few different classes this semester:
CEC 315: Signals & Systems
EP 391/391L: Microcomputers & Electronic Instrumentation Class/Lab
EP 394: Space Systems Engineering
ME 200: Machine Shop Laboratory
SYS 560: Introduction to Systems Engineering Management

Compared to previous semesters, this one was pretty light class-wise.
CEC 315 was a great class with very useful topics and a great professor. The class had no deliverables other than two midterms. The second exam/midterm was not technically a final exam, so it did not happen during ‘finals week’ which really helps to spread the load out for many people. The professor is also very reasonable with exam questions, grades, and lecture material in general, so the midterms were not too stressful.
EP 391/391L was definitely more of a challenging class, but the final project was a great way for students to combine things learned during the semester. There were some exams towards the beginning of the semester, but no final exam. The final project was only given during the last approximately two weeks, so there was definitely a ‘crunch time’ there. However, the product was great. My team designed a device that would basically use serial communication, a stepper motor, and LabVIEW amongst other tools to follow a light source and output live graphs with information such as temperature, battery voltage, and device angle.
EP 394 is mostly a project class. We still had weekly lectures on topics ranging from control systems and class mechanics to spaceflight dynamics and orbits with mini quizzes, but our main grade stemmed from our project. We had free reign to choose our space-related project topic and our group, and then any resources we needed were provided by the Physics department and lab. This class also took into account that many of our projects were large endeavors and could only get a certain amount done within a semester. Overall, lots of work, but it was super rewarding, fun, and the grading scale was very reasonable. My team was designing a floatable platform that would use a camera for vision processing and microthrusters to control and test and vehicle with a control system that could be used for satellite attitude control in space. We received a very good grade for our progress including simulations, CAD models, vision processing code, communication systems, and pneumatic systems among a few things.
ME 200 was very fun. Grades were purely attendance-based, and this was something I never wanted to miss. It was once a week for about 2-3 hours and consisted of learning then doing all sorts of things like riveting, drilling, band saw usage, and more.
SYS 560 was a good class. I was taking this one to count towards my masters degree. No big exams were given, just about one homework per week, some in-class activities, and a final project. The final project was not too large, and it combined what we learned fairly well. We basically had to draw out a schedule plan for eight different programs with overlapping resources to be finished as efficiently and quickly as possible.

EP 391 Final Project
CAD Model of EP 394 Final Project
Setup for a ME 200 Project

Overall, it was a good semester! I am writing this from a location (TBA in the next post) where I am visiting family before my internship begins. A few days ago, I also finished up my research job remotely and plan to find out what my next research project (for next semester) will be over the Summer.
For now, I’ll end this here and save my next blog post to tell more about what I have been doing since the semester has ended and things to expect this Summer!

The $400 Meal and Finals Week

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A good financial decision, really.

Well, finals week has come upon us at ERAU, and like other students, I’ve been studying my free time away. As an engineering major, a decent chunk of my grade relies on my final exam performance. Luckily enough for me, I’ve worked hard all year so I’m striving for a good grade rather than a “can I pass the class?” grade.

But before we get into that, how about the quick story of the $400 meal I ate? Hundreds-of-dollars meals are relatively common at ERAU, surprisingly. I haven’t noticed this anywhere else, but it’s really not due to the price of food here.

It’s due to the airplane rental cost.

So, a few little airports have restaurants right on the airport, catering to pilots as a “fly-in” restaurant. So instead, on the Sunday before the last week of classes, Chris and I ended up at the Pyper Kub restaurant in Williston, FL. It has pretty good food and a pretty good price, but the “$400” bit comes from the aircraft rental and the time flying out there and back.

We didn’t end up renting an ERAU plane but instead rented it from Air America, one of the flight schools in the area. Around this time last year, Chris was practicing for his commercial pilot checkride, but since then he’s earned his commercial pilot certificate and multi-engine add-on. Now he’s preparing for his CFI (certified flight instructor) checkride which means more practice and more flights for me!

ERAU from the air. Looks small, doesn’t it?

Williston, Florida is west of Ocala and it was an hour or so flight (compared to two hours of driving). We left around 10 AM in the morning, ate lunch, and then did a few touch-n-goes in the pattern at Williston. After Chris was done, he headed over to the Crescent practice area which is a common practice area for Riddle students. The maneuvers (in my non-expert opinion) were similar to those he did on the commercial checkride, but he did it from the right seat. (Traditionally, students sit in the left seat of an aircraft where the instructor sits in the right- until you do your CFI stuff when you become the instructor in the right seat.)

Since I’m not a pilot I don’t really know a whole lot about getting your CFI license, but I do know a lot of students go into that pathway before heading to the regional airlines. The other option that I see students do is flying small cargo gigs, but the vast majority of students become instructors at Riddle and surrounding flight schools.

We came back and then it was a start of a long, studious week for me. April 24 marked the last week of classes, with Friday being a study day before finals began on Saturday, paused for Sunday, and resumed Monday through Wednesday. I have four finals this year: Aerospace Structures I, Space Propulsion, Spacecraft Attitude Dynamics, and Aerospace Engineering Materials. I have two other classes, but one is a lab and the other is the lecture that goes along with the lab, so I don’t have any finals from those.

I’m also a TA for an EGR 101 class, so I also ended up helping students in the engineering makerspace lab while they completed their final projects. I saw a lot of super cool projects, from a Rube Goldberg machine to a balsa wood glider, and then watched the teams present on Thursday.

Classes being over, especially in the summer, is kind of bittersweet for me. It means the summer is starting (and so will my internship soon!) but also that my best friends won’t be just a short drive (or even walk!) away. I’m moving out of my current apartment and into another apartment with a couple of friends, so I know next year will be fun. It’s hard to believe that I’m going to be a senior next year. I’m both ready to graduate and not ready to graduate- I’m excited for my first permanent engineering job, but definitely not ready for all of the adult responsibility that comes with it. I like living in the college bubble- I’ve got a lot of freedom but not too many responsibilities. And with that, I’ll see you in the next post… and hopefully at Riddle!

Introduction

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Hi, everyone! I thought I would begin by introducing myself! My name is Isabella DeLorenzo, and I am currently finishing up my junior year as an Engineering Physics major here at ERAU with a concentration in Spacecraft Instrumentation. I have two minors in Applied Mathematics and Electrical & Computer Engineering. I also am participating in the accelerated masters program for my M.S. in Systems Engineering with a concentration in Engineering Management. That means I can begin work on my master’s before I finish my undergrad degree!

I do a few things around campus. For starters, I will start to blog here regularly! You can expect some updates on class projects that I am working on, my life over the Summer as I intern at SpaceX, elaborations on different things I’m involved in around campus, and more! (Definitely open to suggestions on topics if anyone would like to know about anything in particular.) I am also a member of our SWE Chapter and the Project Manager/VP for our Women’s Baja SAE team. I have another student job on campus as a researcher for the Systems Engineering department working on FAA-related projects. In addition to these, I have recently accepted a position as the COAS Student Council Chair of Engineering Physics.

Me in our Baja car during the Activities Fair in Fall 2022
Me with our Baja Treasurer/Ergonomics Lead, Annabelle, during an RSO dinner at President Butler’s home in Fall 2022
Me in Starbase, Texas at my job in front of older iterations of Starship in Summer 2022

I am originally from St. Augustine, FL; born and raised not too far from the Embry-Riddle campus. I have always had a fascination with space. I feel like part of what keeps me going every day is a drive to learn as much as possible about the universe we live in (and the multiverses beyond that if you subscribe that theory). It’s hard for me to say when that curiosity started because it was so early to be honest. It originally manifested as me setting alarms to wake my dad up in the middle of the night to watch meteor showers that I would map out months in advance. Then, I wanted to be astronomer. THEN, one day, I discovered electronics and engineering and the possibility that there HAD to be people designing the rockets I started to see launching more often. To me, as a kid, those rockets were miraculous wonders that held the possibility to learn about literal out-of-this-world concepts, improve life on Earth, and expand humanity beyond our planet. So, I determined that I would be a “rocket engineer” and do everything in my power to dedicate my life to pushing the space exploration industry as far as I could. During this journey, I found other passions like sharing my excitement for STEM with children, teaching others, production management, programming, designing electrical systems, space law, and much more. I also found Embry-Riddle, where I am now, and I look forward to sharing more of my journey with you all!

Week in the Life of an ERAU Student

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Homework, classes, clubs, repeat.

Well, if you’ve been following the blog it seems like I’m always doing something exciting. ERAU does have a lot of excitement going around but sometimes nothing special happens. So here’s what my life looks like on an average, uneventful week.

MONDAY, WEDNESDAY, AND FRIDAY CLASSES: I have three Monday/Wednesday/Friday classes and one Wednesday-only class. These classes are 50 minutes long each day and classes start on the hour with a 10-minute break in between. I have Aerospace Structures 1 (AE 318) at 10 AM, Space Propulsion (AE 414) at 1 PM and Spacecraft Attitude Dynamics (AE 426) every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and then Experimental Aerodynamics (AE 314) on Wednesdays at 3 PM.

TUESDAY AND THURSDAY CLASSES: I have one Tuesday/Thursday class that I’m enrolled in, one I’m a TA for, and one Thursday laboratory class. Standard Tuesday/Thursday classes are an hour and 15 minutes long and have a 15-minute break between classes. I have Aerospace Engineering Materials (AE 316) at 5:15 PM, TA for the mechanical engineering Introduction to Engineering (EGR 101) class, and Experimental Aerodynamics Laboratory (AE 315) on Thursdays from 2:15 to 5 PM. The laboratory classes are much longer than the standard classes to ensure enough time to perform assigned experiments.

When do I eat lunch? Really, it’s whenever I want to. On Monday/Wednesday/Friday, I have two 2-hour gaps and usually eat around 12 PM. On Tuesday/Thursday it’s typically the same. Sometimes I’ll bring my own lunch and sometimes I’ll buy lunch on campus or get it with a friend. It depends on my day- sometimes I’m swamped with work, and other days I have time to relax.

Aside from my classes, I have several activities that I’m involved in. On Tuesday nights from 7-8, I have an Aerospace Engineering Student Advisory Board (AESAB) meeting. I’m currently the public relations officer, but I was elected President for the next academic year (Fall 2023 and Spring 2024). The AESAB is the official liaison between the AE department and the student body, and we try to host semesterly events like Cookies and Comments and the AE Town Hall for students.

On Wednesday nights at 6:30, I attend meetings for the Society of Women Engineers. The meeting on 4/12 I went to was the Town Hall and election results meeting, where I found out I was elected as the next Professional Development Chair! While that means I won’t be on the IGEW committee anymore, I’m excited to begin working as the Professional Development Chair and helping other SWE members achieve their professional goals.

And finally, on Friday nights, I am in charge of the Women’s Ambassadors call session. I’m one of the two Co-Coordinators of the program, which is similar to a manager position. I chose to host call sessions on Friday nights, and that’s when the Women’s Ambassadors reach out to accepted students to be a friendly face on campus before they even start. Sometimes instead of a call session we have a general meeting (once per month) where we talk about updates and news.

So clearly, there are still gaps in my schedule- what do I do?

Well, that really depends. Sometimes I’ll do homework if the period is longer than 30 minutes to an hour, and other times I’ll take a break to relax or do quick work. And by “quick work” I mean things like sending emails (or replying to emails!!) or sending people information about a club/organization I’m in. It also depends on where I am in the academic year- if it’s a time that’s a little more stressful, I’ll probably be doing more quick work and less relaxing, but once those periods pass it’s more relaxing and less quick work.

Being involved, at least for me, depends on time management. If you’ve got good time management and good study habits I see no reason why you can’t be involved in a lot of things, even as an engineering major. Maybe I’ll see you at some future club meetings, and if not, I’ll see you in the next post!

Up Close With the Queen of the Skies!

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Hey now, hey now, this is what dreams are made of…

Every semester Embry-Riddle has a career fair, and for the Spring 2023 semester, Atlas Air brought one of their 747-400s for students to tour. The aircraft left Miami and landed on Monday, and in true Embry-Riddle fashion, plenty of students watched it land. And, of course, I was watching with them.

Since the aircraft is, well, a jumbo jet, there wasn’t a whole lot of space to park it on the Riddle ramp. It ended up parking across the ramp, and the tour included bussing students over to the other area. I signed up for the 2:30-3:45 spot since I didn’t have class for most of Thursday afternoon.

I checked in for the tour at 2:15 in the aviation maintenance science building. I was early, so I waited around a bit until everyone was checked in before we got onto the charter bus that took us over to the other ramp. From there, we walked in a single-file line through the gate, onto airport property, and to the 747, which was fenced off. It was amazing to see up close and a rare chance, so I’m glad I got a spot on the tour. There were stairs pulled up to the side of it, and climbing the stairs made me realize just how large it was.

When we got into the aircraft, the large group was divided into a few smaller groups. First I saw the crew rest area towards the back of the plane and even got to climb up the stairs to it. The area up there isn’t big, but it was still cool to see. From there, my group went to the first class section- while Atlas Air operates cargo, they also do charters, and the 747 that they brought had a VIP passenger configuration. The first class was really nice- I’ve never experienced first class on other airlines, but the seats could convert to lay-flat beds, and that’s definitely nice.

One of the first class seats! It was really nice.

Finally, our group headed to the flight deck. The flight deck of a 747 is smaller than I thought it would be, and it’s definitely high up. I looked out the window and I was able to see the ERAU campus and all the way down the runway where a Delta flight was taxiing out.

After that, it was pretty much individual exploration. You were free to walk around inside the aircraft or around it, and I went back outside to walk around. There were a lot of people on the ground ensuring everyone was safe, but we were able to get super close to the aircraft, including the engines and the wheels. The APU (auxiliary power unit) was on, and the wind made the engines spin a bit. It was definitely cool to see.

Seriously, 747s are huge. I couldn’t touch the engine, even if I wanted to.

Even though I only had about 40 minutes with the aircraft, it was definitely worth it. The tour was free, but it’s something that I would’ve paid money to see, too. It’s definitely a uniquely Embry-Riddle experience that an airline will bring a 747 and allow students to tour it. I wonder if there will be any more surprise aircraft visitors this year- the F-15 that showed up a couple of weeks ago was definitely unexpected! Until then, I’ll see you in the next post… and hopefully at Riddle!

Inside the Honors Program

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Source: Me, who has been an Honors student for almost three years.

I’ve noticed that the annual Honors Program invitation has been sent out to current students, and prospective students have been talking about Honors Program decisions coming out for a while. I am an Honors student and have been in the program since my freshman year, as I was invited to apply before I started at ERAU.

Since I applied before I arrived at ERAU, I had to submit an essay (and I, unfortunately, don’t remember the prompt) as well as two letters of recommendation. I had already submitted two letters of recommendation to the university for admission, but the Honors recommenders were separate people. I submitted the application in January and heard back a few months later.

My first year was a bit weird since it was Fall 2020 and Spring 2021, so there were no Honors series events. In a non-COVID year students must attend three Honors events, and they can be different things. Last year, for example, the Kennedy Space Center trip counted as one Honors event and I went to GameTime over the weekend with the Honors Program which counted as one of my three events for the semester.

GameTime!

The Honors series events cover many different interests. This year there was one called “To Be a Water Protector…in Florida” and last year Apollo 13 astronaut Fred Haise spoke to us about his experiences at NASA. The Fred Haise talk was my favorite Honors Series event by far, and it was the most popular one I had seen. Students, faculty, and staff filled up the event enter and they even had to turn a few people away.

The Honors program has a few additional perks- one is priority registration, so I’ve always been able to get the classes I want. Priority registration takes place on the first day it’s possible for students to register, which means Honors students (and other students with priority registration) get to choose the classes they want first.

Another perk of Honors is Honors housing. In your freshman year, Honors students get to live on the fifth floor of New Residence Hall 2, which I personally loved. I was close to everything and when it rained, I could simply walk downstairs and go to Boundless for lunch. In New Res 1/2, you have a roommate and two suitemates, which means you share a bathroom/mini fridge/microwave with three other people. It’s a little smaller than Adams and Wood, but New Res 2 (and not New Res 1) has ovens and is much closer.

Move-out day… this was my final dorm setup.

However, the Honors program does have a few requirements that non-Honors students don’t. First is the HON classes- HON 150/250/350 will replace some of your general education classes. For example, HON 350 replaced my upper-level humanities class. The HON class subjects are determined by the professors every year, but I was always able to choose classes that interested me. My HON 150, titled “Disruptive Technology: Past, Present, and Future” was taught by Dr. Wojton and I absolutely loved the class! My HON 250 and 350 were both taught by Dr. Lear- HON 250 was about video games and HON 350 was about science fiction.

HON classes also extend to your major. I’m an aerospace engineering major, which means my HON classes are built into the curriculum. For example, for AE 316, I am taking AE 316HON instead, and all of the other students are Honors students as well. For other majors without HON classes built in, students do Honors contracts. In aeronautical science, there are several classes that you can do an Honors contract with. An Honors contract is an extra project you and the professor agree on and it will earn you Honors credit for the course and satisfy Honors graduation requirements.

Being in the Honors Program also has the added benefit of access to the Honors center. Located in New Res 3, the center is exclusively for Honors students and has the Honors library within it. It provides a quiet study space for Honors students, and it also has a computer lab. I’ve only been in the Honors center a few times, but I’ve enjoyed using it when I need it.

So is Honors worth it? I think so, but it might be different based on what you’re looking for. I don’t find the Honors classes to be too much more work- maybe just an additional project. While the Honors sections generally have only one professor, I haven’t had an HON class professor that I’ve disliked. There are also currently no scholarships tied to the Honors program, so if you find that you don’t want to be an Honors student anymore then you can drop out of the program without financial penalties. I’m personally glad that I applied to the Honors program and was accepted. Honors or not, I’ll see you in the next post… and hopefully at Riddle!

2023’s Long Weekend and the Daytona 500

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Also known as the yearly free Thunderbirds airshow.

Just like last year, the Thunderbirds hosted their annual free airshow Daytona 500 happened. And you can watch it here.

As always, the week didn’t start with a free airshow.

The week started much earlier with a C-17 flying in and then promptly leaving before another one flew in. Every year ERAU’s flight department gets the schedule for all of the military aircraft coming in, and the flight students spread it around so aviation enthusiasts like myself can join in the fun of watching them.

Every time I see a C-17 I’m reminded of how massive they are. For their size (in my non-professional opinion) they’re very agile and can do things I wouldn’t expect out of an aircraft like it. I’ve watched the C-17 and Thunderbirds for three years now, and every year, Riddle students show up. I’ve even heard of a few people missing class to watch.

The majority of the Thunderbirds arrived on Thursday and as usual, there were plenty of Embry-Riddle students on top of the aircraft maintenance science (AMS) building balcony watching them fly in. There were two that arrived early doing media flights, also on Thursday but in the morning. This year I also noticed people on top of the parking garage, which is new this year and another great alternative for when the AMS balcony is closed.

The actual Daytona 500 event was on Sunday, but the Thunderbirds practiced on Friday and Saturday mornings. I watched the takeoffs on Friday morning before I headed to my first class, Aerospace Structures I. Interestingly enough, we did a homework problem earlier in the year about a fighter aircraft in a loop.

I, unfortunately, didn’t get to watch the Saturday morning practice since I was too busy sleeping in. I’d decided that sleeping until 11:30 AM sounded like a better option than watching the Thunderbirds take off again, knowing I’d be watching the flyover on Sunday. On Saturday and Sunday, I caught up on my homework.

Sunday was the flyover, so I made sure to block time out for that. It started a little before 3 PM, with the Thunderbirds making their first pass while the national anthem played. They flew over the stadium a few more times before they finished with the delta burst (the first clip in the video, not the last- somehow the clips got out of order when I used iMovie to put them together).

Monday was President’s Day, which was quiet both figuratively and literally. No F-16 noises were heard all day, and I only did one homework assignment. I ended up going ice skating with a couple of my friends- and yes, Daytona has an ice rink! ERAU has an ice hockey team and they play at the rink.

Overall, this weekend was really fun and uniquely ERAU. I can’t think of another school where people will come together and watch aircraft fly in while staying on campus. I’ve watched the Thunderbirds and C-17s that come in every year and I’ll do it until I graduate and leave the area. Until then, I’ll see you in the next post… and hopefully at Riddle!

IGEW 2023: Finally In Person!

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Side note, children are hilarious!

Last year (and the year before), the Introduce a Girl to Engineering Workshop (or IGEW) event was held virtually due to the pandemic. This year, however, the event was back in person, and we had over 200 students sign up!

While the in-person event is much more chaotic than the virtual event, it was still super fun. This is my third year on the IGEW committee, and I’ve enjoyed the past IGEWs. The event takes about a year of planning, usually starting with choosing a date and designing the modules. Closer to the event, the logistics are worked out, including asking volunteers to help with the event, gathering supplies for the modules, ordering food, and asking other campus organizations for their help. This year we had the Emergency Response Team (ERT) help out.

This year, I adapted last year’s airplane module into the airplane launching module. I focused on the fundamentals of flight again this year, but the students were all allowed to design their own paper airplanes. Then we added a paperclip to the nose of the airplane and used two pencils connected with a rubber band as a slingshot to launch the paper airplanes. After everyone had practiced launching their airplanes, everyone went into the hallway and we had an airplane launching contest.

The night before the event was module prep night. Every group of volunteers put the supplies for their room in their assigned room along with nonperishable snacks. After the volunteers were done with their rooms, they moved supplies to the union event center. It was mainly a lot of T-shirts.

And then, bright and early the next morning, IGEW happened.

Volunteers waiting for the students to arrive!

I arrived at the student union around 6:30 AM to start helping out with check-in. It didn’t officially begin until 7:30, but we were starting to set everything up and prepare for the families to show up. The participating children were always accompanied by a volunteer, and to get them into their groups, we ended up walking them from the check-in table to their specific group’s table in the event center.

After that, there was a quick welcome before we broke out into groups. Groups 1-5 were on the first floor while Groups 6-10 were on the second floor. Each floor had all five modules (Airplane Launcher, Binary Beads, Biodomes, Marble Roller Coaster, and Paper Making) but it was an easy way to divide up the participants. Each room also had three volunteers per room who would give the module presentation and assist the participants in doing the modules.

Lunch was also free, and it was served after the third module. Everyone ate pizza, and my group ended up watching the Bill Nye video about flight and aerodynamics while they ate. After that, everyone rotated rooms again and finished off the day by completing two more modules.

At the end of the event, everyone then went back to the student union where we took a photo standing on the Embry-Riddle seal. Several people had started to arrive for pick-up, and all of the participants went to the event center. To ensure a safe pick-up, family members were required to provide an ID while an IGEW committee member went to retrieve their participant. The participants were then given a certificate of completion, a bag, and information about SWE and this year’s IGEW committee.

The work didn’t end there. Even though everyone was picked up, we had to clean the areas we’d used and transport everything back to the storage locker. It was a long day, so everyone cleaned quickly and loaded things into cars. As part of the IGEW committee, I helped stuff the storage unit with all of the IGEW materials. Just like that, IGEW was over.

I’m grateful that I was elected to the committee for a third year, and I’ll definitely be seeking reelection for my senior year. I could tell how happy the event made the participants, and it’s nice to encourage the next generation of engineering leaders. Who knows- maybe they’ll even become students here! I’ll see you in the next post… and hopefully at Riddle!

New Perspective

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Whether you are a student, parent, or alumni, there’s a high probability you don’t know me yet. Allow me to introduce myself! My name is Chloe Christovich and I am in my second year of studies here at Embry-Riddle. I am currently pursuing my Bachelor’s degree in Aviation Business Administration, concentrated in Aviation and Aerospace Marketing. I am from Jacksonville Beach, Florida, which is just far enough away to define my own sense of individuality, but also have my family close enough to visit. Speaking of family, I am one of 8 children, 2 of which have earned their degrees from ERAU! While Jacksonville Beach may not be so far from Daytona Beach, my lifestyle in each respective place is pretty different. I am here to tell you all about my life at Embry-Riddle. I intend to share with you things like what a normal day looks like for me, what I do on campus, how I deal with stress and anxiety, where and when I hang out with my friends, and what I do outside of being on campus, among other things. I am so excited to be sharing this with you all and can’t wait to tell you all about My Life at Riddle.

Outside the O’Maley College of Business (O’COB) where most of my classes are held and also where I do work during my office hours for the Social Media Marketing Team.

A normal day for me could be entirely different than the day before, but most days look about the same. Just about every day, I wake up around 7 am. Living on campus means I don’t have to worry about commuting time, but I still like to give myself at least an hour in the mornings before I have to go anywhere. Depending on the day, I start classes at 9 am or 8:15 am. One of the benefits of getting to pick your own classes is getting to tailor your schedule to your needs and wants. For me, I like to get through all of my classes as early as possible, that way I have more time in my day to participate in extracurriculars or just sit back and relax. 

This semester, I have class at 9 am on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. This class only lasts about an hour,  and then I don’t have class until 1 pm! I use my break in between these two classes to grab a bite to eat, socialize in the Student Union, catch up on school work, or sometimes just take a nap. Once I’m done with all my classes for the day, I head back to my on-campus dorm and usually watch an episode or two of my favorite TV shows (These change depending on the day). I do this to relax and unwind from a day of work. After taking some time to relax, I like to clean up my room a little bit just to make sure I can be at peace there. Sometimes, I like to go to the gym in the evenings or I’ll go hang out with some of my friends – It really just depends on the day!

My ideal study setup – Complete with inspirational quotes, my favorite drink to give me some energy, and a wax melter with my favorite scent; Very dorm friendly!

On Tuesdays and Thursdays this semester, I have class at 8:15 am, then 9:45 am. After I’m done with my first two classes these days, I grab lunch from the Union and then head back to the O’Maley College of Business (O’COB), where I have office hours as the manager for the College of Business Social Media Marketing Team. Setting aside office time to work on content for the social media pages was one of my best ideas, and these 2 hours are absolutely my favorite part of the day. Once I’m done with my office hours, I head off to my last class of the day, and then I’m done with everything by 3:30 pm! This gives me plenty of time to do schoolwork, hang out with friends, and anything else I set my mind to.

A photo I took while observing a friend’s flight after classes.

Besides going to classes every day and hanging out with my friends, I am involved in a few other organizations here on campus. I have just recently taken over as the manager of the College of Business Social Media Marketing Team, which is one of my favorite things to be a part of! I love getting to use my creative skills in a way that benefits my fellow students. I am also a Resident Advisor for Housing and Residence Life. I am currently an RA in New Residence Hall 2, where my community is made up of first-year students. In addition to this, I am also a member of Greek Life. Being a member of all these different organizations keeps me on my feet, but I love the opportunities that are provided to me because of it.

Working for the Social Media Marketing Team during one of our Career Expo Headshots Sessions.
After a weekly meeting with my RA team in New Residence Hall 2.
At the Kennedy Space Center in Titusville, FL with some of my sorority sisters.

I’ve discovered, in my almost 2 years at ERAU, that there’s always something to do every day, which is why my schedule changes all the time. Sure, my classes are always the same every day, but everything else depends on what I find to do around campus! I am so excited to be sharing all about My Life at Riddle with all of you!