July 31, 2008
While many college students use the summer to relax by the pool, go to the beach and work as waiters and waitresses, members of the Georgia Tech Softball Team are making full use of their time. Some are traveling the world, while others are getting a head start on their careers with some unique and interesting internships or jobs. RamblinWreck.com will give you a feel for what some of these student-athletes are doing with “Summer Diaries.” In part six, rising sophomore Christy Jones checks in from Kansas where she in interning this summer with Hawker Beechcraft, a company which designs and produces business jets. Check back in the coming weeks to see what other members of the team are up to as well as full recaps and updates from Beijing beginning in August.
Softball Summer Diaries Part VI: Christy Jones Checks In From Kansas
Greetings from Kansas!
Freshman summer: calm, relaxing, swimming, family, friends, laying out, ice cream, late night movies and sleeping in till noon. OH NO! Instead of participating in these normal summer activities, I have experienced some of the corporate world working with a great company, Hawker Beechcraft. I was one of the lucky college kids to earn an internship for the summer.
Mornings begin at 6:00 a.m. when my alarm goes off. Although driving across town in Wichita is a little different than in Atlanta, I still have a hefty commute of thirty minutes. I work 40-hour work weeks, every week. Hawker Beechcraft designs and produces business jets. The newest business jet delivered in June 2008 is the Hawker 4000. I have seen this plane in the plants, and it is certainly a beauty. Currently, I am in the Mass Properties group in the Weights division. Art Chabino, my awesome supervisor, crams my brain with information way over my head. He’ll use ten acronyms in one sentence…man! I wouldn’t be surprised if there was even an acronym for “acronym.” Working under Art has taught me so many things already in the short amount of time.
I always thought that the things I learned in school wouldn’t help me in the real world (everyone thinks that at first), but I had to use every bit of my knowledge of Linear Algebra to solve a problem Art threw at me. School’s pretty good after all. The weights department requires work throughout the entire production of the plane. Balance is so important when dealing with planes, as you can assume. Manufacturers will often call and request a weights engineer to balance a part of the plane. I’ve witnessed three ailerons and one elevator get balanced. The weights department is also involved with plane deliveries, database upkeep, weight summaries, and several other aspects I have not experienced.
I have had the opportunity to meet several people including two other Georgia Tech students, Elaine Murphy and Cameron Miller. We don’t work in the same building, but it’s fun to chat with them occasionally about what they’ve been working on. Other than work, I’ve been keeping up my softball skills and enjoying the company of my family! See you in three weeks GT! Miss and love everyone! GO JACKETS!!!
