This week Grossmont College hosted its first Research Fair for students to learn more about research opportunities. Our very own MARC scholar, Lorelay Mendoza (Environmental Engineering major) was a guest speaker at this event, where she had the opportunity to share her experiences as an undergraduate researcher at SDSU. Specifically, she gave advice to students on how to find potential mentors, and how to approach them regarding research opportunities in their laboratories. Lorelay also talked about some of the great opportunities CASA programs (e.g. MARC) offers SDSU students that help promote student success in research (STEM) careers. Lorelay’s intentions at this event – being a transfer student herself – was to encourage students to seek research opportunities if interested in pursuing a doctorate degree in the STEM fields and be an example of where hard work and dedication can take you.
Lorelay is currently completing her third year at SDSU, where she has the opportunity to conduct research in the Water Innovation and Reuse Laboratory under Dr. Natalie Mladenov. Her current project involves using the optical properties of organic matter as a means to enumerate bacteria in urban watersheds. This work lays a foundation that leads to providing a way to monitor the pathogenic constituents of water in real time. This summer, she will be conducting research in the Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering: Re-Inventing the Nation’s Urban Water Infrastructure Program at UC Berkeley. After completing her undergraduate degree, Lorelay intends to pursue her Ph.D. in an engineering field that addresses and solves the challenges humans face with current global climate conditions and an increasing population.
