Working with MAP Environmental: An Ocean Lakes High School MSA Mentorship

Hello, all!

My name is Aveline K., and I am a rising senior in the Math and Science Academy (MSA) at Ocean Lakes High School.  My first few days working with MAP Environmental have been an amazing experience as I am learning about the inner workings of a unique business and its fundamental processes.  My mentor, Mrs. Charbeneau, has begun to lead me through the steps of the environmental services MAP Environmental provides for their clients: reports, permitting, and consulting, which all greatly intrigue me.  

Traditionally, senior projects in MSA usually follow the strict format of science and research (normally pertaining to the medical or engineering fields).  However, when I heard MAP Environmental was offering a mentorship that greatly focused on the business process, I became both interested and excited.  I have a bit of my own experience in the realm of entrepreneurship, but experiencing an entirely new business model was an opportunity that greatly excited me.  

In my mentorship, I have been able to experience training and work related tasks that have helped me come up with ideas for my ultimate goal: determining the feasibility of creating an application, or “MAP App,” for the company to use in providing customers with the best possible experience.  In my time at MAP Environmental, I will be taking notes, completing research, and determining if a MAP App is a possible innovation for the company.  My training with the team and reviewing of business materials are allowing me to gain insight as to what the application should include and if it is possible to implement these ideas.  So far, the review of MAP Environmental’s process has allowed me to get a feel for what the company may need to include in the App’s capabilities and if these desired functions are economically feasible.

In order to complete a study on this idea I have been learning about the process already in place; this process is all new to me and it is a challenge to learn about the requirements of each individual project and every bit of communication and study that is needed. However, these work tasks are valuable to my mentorship as they allow me to learn the odds and ends and, therefore, gain a better understanding of what is needed in the creation of an application.  Mentoring with MAP Environmental has proved itself to be a highly captivating capstone project and I am excited to see how it proceeds!