Maridy Mazaira knows that it’s up to her to make her dreams and goals a reality.
The engineering major may be tempted to feel like the odds are against her as a Hispanic woman in this field. However, she keeps moving forward thanks to some advice from her sibling.
“My brother once told me ‘The statistic means nothing to the individual.’ And so whether the statistics favor you or not, it all comes down to you to make your dreams and goals a reality,” she said, “It is this optimism that I share with all my friends, family and strangers, so that we can all continue to go above and beyond, becoming the best version of ourselves, in order to inspire and help others along the way.”
One way she inspires others is through her role in the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE). Mazaira is the president and a founder of the UM-Dearborn chapter of this national organization, which works to empower Hispanics to be innovators, scientists,
mathematicians and engineers. Through this group, she’s had the opportunity to mentor high schoolers to pursue STEM careers.
“Maridy is very passionate about her vision for the SHPE organization and has established a strong foundation,” said Tony DeLaRosa, assistant director of the Engineering Experiential Learning Program.
“SHPE will be her legacy and confirmation of her positive impact not only on campus but throughout the surrounding communities.”
Mazaira is also stretching herself beyond campus by earning co-ops and internships at companies such as ZF-TRW and Ford Motor Co. While at Ford, she worked in the final assembly building of the F-150s. Her work helped improve the electrical union workers standardized reporting formats, which led to an improvement of the mean time to repair the F-150 truck electrical failures. By the time she graduates, she will have nearly 12 months of practical engineering experience, which should serve her well in her future career.
“My dream career is to work for a company that will challenge me through daily continuous improvement and problem-solving tasks,” Mazaira said. “I envision myself in a position where I can continue to motivate others, and persist on developing myself as a valuable servant leader.”