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Originally from Corpus
Christi, Texas, Cindy followed the advice of her mentor, fellow alumnus,
Jim Prappas, and applied to a little known (in Texas that is) private
university called FIT in central Florida.
Her mind was quickly made up after talking to Dean Norris, previous
department chair of DMES, and after attending the Melbourne campus during
Panther Prep.
Instead
of following the path of most Texans who became either Aggies or Longhorns,
she spent five years in Melbourne, participating in College Players and the
yearbook, and went on to receive two degrees in Biological Oceanography and
Chemical Oceanography in 1997.
After
graduating, Cindy went to work for Western Geophysical, later to become
Western Geco, as a Field Positioning Specialist. For six weeks at a time, she lived in the
middle of the Gulf of Mexico on a 300 foot seismic research vessel. She did get a break from the ship life
when she spent a year in Norway working on vessel procedures and
documentation.
Five
years later, after having followed her future husband, Robert Pratt,
’98, out to California, she left Western Geco to begin a new career with
Fugro West, Inc, as a hydrographic surveyor (thanks to an introduction from
fellow alumnus, Michelle (Boemke) Fillingim, ‘97).
Nearly
five years later, she still loves her job, still spends time offshore, but
never for longer than a few weeks.
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Before
attending Florida Tech, SaraH grew up on the move. She graduated from the International
School of Kuala Lumpur (ISKL), Malaysia in 1996. Prior ISKL, she spent the first 8 months
of high school at the American School of Paris, France, and the previous
years living in several east coast states in the US and Algeria.
Since her
days at FIT, SaraH has
spent most of her time at sea working for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). But before her maritime adventures began
with NOAA, she worked for a subsidiary of Connors Brothers Inc. in Bath, Maine. Connors
Bros. is a seafood company that specializes in hermetically canned
sardines. SaraH spent her time there becoming a food safety specialist and
document control coordinator.
However, the
long winter made her yearn for the sun and warmth of the south that she had
grown accustomed to at FIT. In
August of 2001, she was commissioned in the NOAA Corps (the Seventh
Uniformed Service). She spent an intense training period at the US Merchant
Marine Academy learning how to drive a ship, after which she was promptly
sent to the South Pacific to spend 2.5 years at sea aboard the NOAA Ship KA'IMIMOANA, based in Honolulu,
Hawaii.
She is now in
her first land assignment in Long Beach working for NOAA's National Marine Fisheries
Service as the Science &
Outreach Coordinator for the Southwest Regional Office of the National Marine Fisheries
Service.
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The Treasurer will handle all monetary transactions of
the Chapter. He/she will work with
the President to develop a budget & arrange a special University
restricted account with the Alumni Affairs Office (this is to avoid
liability issues
& save us the hassle of trying to find a bank, etc). The Treasurer will also keep a financial
history of all transactions.
If you are interested, drop Cindy an e-mail at fitalumnila@yahoo.com.
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