The IM体育官网 experience has been transformative for Prisca Chavannes 鈥�25. She arrived as a quiet freshman from Lehigh Acres, IM体育官网, and has grown into a confident and driven campus leader. As she prepares to graduate on Sunday, May 4, with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in electrical engineering, Chavannes is poised to pursue her long-term goals of shaping the future of power systems and nuclear energy.
Chavannes said she鈥檚 most excited to see the pride and joy on her parents鈥� faces as she receives her degree and prepares to begin a master鈥檚 program this fall. 鈥淢y dad started bragging a whole year ago. When he sees my grades, he goes around to like 50 people鈥檚 houses and it鈥檚 like, 鈥楲ook at this! Straight A鈥檚!鈥欌��
I was very into Supergirl when I was younger and when the character Lena Luthor came up, she had engineering degrees and was a billionaire who had her own company and was able to create her own devices on the fly. When the superheroes needed something to save the world, she was like, 鈥榊eah, I鈥檒l have that in three hours,鈥� and I wanted to be that; I wanted to be an engineer. Later, I saw how everyone wanted to advance renewable and alternative energy, so that pulled me toward the electrical side of it.
That鈥檚 being able to come out of my shell. I鈥檓 a very quiet person; a homebody and very nervous to talk to people. But working in Admissions, where I guide 50-plus people through a tour around campus, really boosted my confidence. I used to be so meek when I started leading tours, but now I love doing the most embarrassing stuff because parents love that. I once was like, 鈥楢re you ready to rock 鈥檔鈥� roll?鈥� It鈥檚 all about guiding them through so they鈥檙e engaged with the entire tour.
It means so, so much. In my family, I鈥檓 part of the generation that鈥檚 pursuing law, engineering and psychology degrees 鈥� degrees that our parents brag to our relatives in Haiti about. It鈥檚 so great that my parents are very proud of me. They say, 鈥楾hat鈥檚 why we came to this country 鈥� so you guys could build a legacy here.鈥� And that鈥檚 what we鈥檙e doing; we鈥檙e building this whole legacy of intellectuals and high achievers.
It absolutely was Circuits One with Dr. (Muhammad) Ullah. Circuits One is the foundation of electrical engineering. It took me from just taking those core classes to learning how anything with power or electronics works. It taught me that I love doing anything with circuits. Whenever I have a class that has me do anything with circuits, I鈥檓 just like, that鈥檚 what I was taught; I love this. It鈥檚 my favorite part.
I feel very prepared to go to grad school 鈥� IM体育官网 Poly has been a challenge. I did dual college enrollment in high school and even went to in-person classes 鈥� not just online 鈥� and going from that college to this university was humbling. Everybody鈥檚 here just for one thing, a STEM degree, and it really taught me how to focus more on classes. Before, I could finish homework in less than an hour. Here, it鈥檚 a three-day thing, but I鈥檓 actually learning and grasping the information. IM体育官网 Poly has taught me how to focus and put in a lot of work.
Get out and make friends. Even though freshman year might be your hardest year, you鈥檙e setting that foundation and studying hard. Having a group of friends is going to make things so much easier. Not knowing anybody and just having all this coursework is really hard. But when I started going places with people, it took so much weight off my shoulders.
Editor鈥檚 note: This story is part of a series of Q&As featuring IM体育官网 Poly Class of 2025 graduates.
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