Orlando, FL – Michele Mingoia, management solutions consultant for global consulting firm PBS&J, was recently recognized by the Seminole County Public Schools (SCPS) for 15 years of volunteer work in support of the Seminole County Regional Science, Math & Engineering Fair. Regina Klaers, Director of Community Involvement/Public Information Officer for SCPS, presented a certificate to Mingoia at the March 24 meeting of the Seminole County School Board.
In honoring Mingoia, Klaers asked the audience to: “Imagine students from the middle schools and high schools in our district becoming involved in this venture. Imagine over 200 projects being submitted! Imagine the judging power necessary in order to award medals for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place recognitions, in addition to ribbons for honorable mention. Imagine coordinating the coordination of the judging, the fair logistics involved with the venue, the hosting, the awards, and on and on–and imagine that one person, in particular, has been involved with this event since the early 1990s and has run it for years—all as a volunteer!”
“It is my honor to bring to the Board an outstanding volunteer who has donated countless hours over many, many years for the benefit of our blossoming scientists, mathematicians, and engineers. Please join me in welcoming—and thanking—Michele Mingoia,” stated Klaers.
For her part, Mingoia wants to encourage area youth to pursue science, technology, mathematics, and engineering careers. “Enrollment in these fields is down,” states Mingoia. “The school system, public organizations, and private businesses must work together to provide opportunities to inspire youth to enter these fields to ensure the future prosperity of this country.” At PBS&J, Mingoia is a champion for the event. Since joining the company in 2006, she took over the recruiting of employees to volunteer as judges. During the 2009 fair, eleven of the 150 judges were from PBS&J. The firm has also been a sponsor of the fair for over 15 years.
An engineer herself, she holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in computer and systems engineering. Complementing those degrees is an M.B.A. When she’s not helping to run the fair, Mingoia works in PBS&J’s Orlando office in the field of information technology applied to business process analysis, documentation, and improvement; and all aspects of quality management.