Short Feature with Women's Cross Country Rising Senior Wade Lacey

Rising senior Wade Lacey, a mechanical engineering major from Albany, New York, answers a few questions about student life at Carnegie Mellon, her internshiprs, what she's excited about this semester, why she chose her major, and what she enjoys about Pittsburgh.

1. What do you enjoy about campus life?

The campus is in a great place where we are not in downtown, but we have access to it (especially with "free" busing). Plus there are alot of things always happening on and off campus in Squirrel Hill too.

2. What do you get involved in outside of cross country/track and field?

I am involved in TAF (tartan athlete fellowship) a Christan group for all types of athelets.

3. Tell us about your internship experience.

I am working as a summer intern at Vitro. They are an automotive glass manufacturer and one of their headquarters is in Pittsburgh. I have a desk in the R&D facility right outside of Pittsburgh, but I am traveling to work at their other plants on a very regular basis.  I am doing most of my work in the process engineering department, which developed the machines and lines the glass windows are actually made on.  I am also working on a small R&D project for the future of automotive glass.

The past two summers I worked for Sage Engineering Associates, which is a building HVAC, structural, and plumbing firm.  They are located in Albany, my home city, and while working with them I learned alot about how HVAC systems are designed and implemented in a variety of different types of buildings. 

4. What are you excited about this semester?

I am very excited for a class I am going to take called guest experience and theme park design.  I have been waiting to get into this class for a year now and I have heard great things about it. I am also looking forward to my capstone Design 2 class because the hands on building projects we get to do in Mechanical Engineering are my favorite.

5. Why did you select your course of study – what has been a favorite class?

I choose Mechanical Engineering because I really enjoy knowing how things (particularly machines) work.  What the science is behind what we see. 

6. What class would you recommended as a MUST take at CMU?

Freshman year my global history course called Genocide and Weapons of Mass Destruction, was a great class.  The professor gave really engaging lectures and although the name sounds terrible the topics we're very interesting.

7. What have you enjoyed about living in Pittsburgh?

It's a young growing city with ALOT going on.  It is so easy to explore and really beautiful in the warmer months.  Also the  parks and bike trails are great.

8. What has been a memorable moment so far during your time on the team?

There have been alot of memorable moments with my team because we spend so much of our time together.  I think the one that sticks out the most now is my first race back this past indoor track season. I had been injured for two years and finially was able to race and I just felt super supported by all my teammates and coaches so it was very encouraging.