Racing Down a Path to Success
8/22/2019 3:44:00 PM | Women's Swimming and Diving, Student Athlete, Features, Intellectual Development
By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Communications
The process of improving can feel like a daunting task.
However, that task feels a lot more manageable when broken down into all the components.
Junior Anna Francisco has experienced the importance, and impact, of improvements – both in her summer internship with Curtiss-Wright and as a member of the Lehigh swimming and diving team.
"If you're focusing on improving too many things at once, you're not really going to be focused on any single thing," she said. "That can apply to even an individual, or a team."
Francisco served as an operations intern for Bethlehem-based Curtiss-Wright a company providing naval and maritime technological expertise since 1947. As explained on its website, "Curtiss-Wright is the leading supplier of pumps and components which meet the demanding requirements of the U.S. Navy's surface and submerged fleet."
"I worked with the test department, which are the people who tested the water pumps we made," said Francisco. "My supervisor wanted there to be improvements in many places of their department and he had a bunch of ideas for me. They told me what the issues were, but they also let me spot issues. We worked together and I came up with my own solutions."
As Francisco summarized, "My solutions helped made Curtiss-Wright's processes and work space more efficient and organized."
That work space featured many different branches, with Francisco focusing on the power branch.
"We're the only branch of Curtiss-Wright that creates these pumps," she said. "The pumps go into the nuclear reactor plants inside of engine rooms, naval ships and aircraft carriers. We put them all together and shipped them out."
The pumps are a critical aspect of Curtiss-Wright's business. As just an intern, Francisco was thrust into important tasks within the company.
"On Fridays, we normally had a meeting with the testing team, mainly for brainstorming possible improvements in the department," she said. "Given my responsibilities in the summer, I was actually running those meetings. My boss gave me the attention of everyone and I came in with some of the issues I found in the testing department. I offered my solutions, took them on a tour and showed them the issues I found so they could see them with their own eyes.
"Then, I asked for their feedback or suggestions on my solutions because they're the ones working with it first-hand."
This summer, Francisco was forced to display leadership at a young age, but thanks to her development at Lehigh, she felt ready.
"I believe the way Lehigh Athletics has helped me most is through the Flight 45 Leadership Program," she said. "Lehigh really values creating leaders. They don't only focus on taking in people who are already leaders, but they also show all their athletes what it takes to be a leader and give us the support to build leaders inside out. That's given me the confidence, not just in the engineering aspects, but also in communication and reaching out to resources. It has given me the social side, and the ability to connect with my superiors."
Connecting with the right people actually gave Francisco the opportunity at Curtiss-Wright in the first place.
"In the fall, I attended the career fair offered by the Lehigh career center and went in knowing some of the companies there, including Curtiss-Wright," she said. "I had one of their positions in mind, so I asked the recruiter and he really gaged that I was interested in their company. He later reached out about an interview and coming in to meet them."
In the end, finding herself at a place like Curtiss-Wright was no surprise for Francisco.
"I've always been interested in the defense sector," she said. "I originally had a dream about going into the Navy or creating weapons for the Navy. Now, I'm able to contribute in another way, where I actually help in the process of making pumps for Naval Ships. What I'm doing really affects the country as a whole."
Francisco's focus has been on processes, specifically making processes as efficient as possible. She has a yellow belt in six sigma, which is defined as a set of management techniques intended to improve business processes by greatly reducing the probability that an error or defect will occur.
"If you try to improve something over a long period of time, you're probably not going to see results," said Francisco. "This summer, I was able to get a deeper look at continuous improvement in the workspace, which is what I want to get into when I graduate."
Francisco's growth mindset will pay dividends academically, athletically and in life after graduation.
"Anna is forging a distinctive future career," said Lehigh head coach Rob Herb. "She is so open to learning and experiencing everything she can. I believe her summer opportunity has been vital in her career plan and showing Anna how capable she is. "
Francisco still has two years before graduation, but in the meantime, the same concepts of continuous improvement are in place on the swimming and diving team.
"Our coaches tell us if we're trying to improve our technique, to focus on one thing at a time," she said. "Maybe one day we'll focus on our kick and the next day, we'll focus on our core. It really helps taking it one piece at a team, so all your focus is on one thing and you can truly improve."
At Curtiss-Wright, Francisco sought out the issues, seeing what works and what doesn't.
"It very much correlates to the pool," she said. "We're all very different swimmers, so it's tough to have all of us on the same routine. Each year, we test out what works for each swimmer. Our coaches and each of us are continuously improving our routines and habits, trying to find what will make us the best athletes we can."
Francisco is on top of her continuous improvement as a student, athlete and person, due in large part to her summer experience, which positively affected her in a multitude of ways.
"At the end of this past year, I had just started my specific engineering classes and was confused as to what I wanted to do," she said. "I felt a little lost, both in the pool and in the classroom, but this summer gave me so many opportunities to connect with people and take initiative over my own projects. It gave me a lot of confidence in how I can connect with people, and with my career skills.
"I believe it's something I'm going to bring to the pool, just because I'm confident I can lead and communicate well," Francisco continued. "That will definitely help me in the pool and the classroom."
"I have absolutely seen an increase in Anna's confidence," said Herb. "Anna is very special. Her swim and academic talents are amazing, and now, she is hitting her stride and believing in herself which is a major part of her growth. She sees the path in front of her and is so excited to race down that path."
The process of improving can feel like a daunting task.
However, that task feels a lot more manageable when broken down into all the components.
Junior Anna Francisco has experienced the importance, and impact, of improvements – both in her summer internship with Curtiss-Wright and as a member of the Lehigh swimming and diving team.
"If you're focusing on improving too many things at once, you're not really going to be focused on any single thing," she said. "That can apply to even an individual, or a team."
Francisco served as an operations intern for Bethlehem-based Curtiss-Wright a company providing naval and maritime technological expertise since 1947. As explained on its website, "Curtiss-Wright is the leading supplier of pumps and components which meet the demanding requirements of the U.S. Navy's surface and submerged fleet."
"I worked with the test department, which are the people who tested the water pumps we made," said Francisco. "My supervisor wanted there to be improvements in many places of their department and he had a bunch of ideas for me. They told me what the issues were, but they also let me spot issues. We worked together and I came up with my own solutions."
As Francisco summarized, "My solutions helped made Curtiss-Wright's processes and work space more efficient and organized."
That work space featured many different branches, with Francisco focusing on the power branch.
"We're the only branch of Curtiss-Wright that creates these pumps," she said. "The pumps go into the nuclear reactor plants inside of engine rooms, naval ships and aircraft carriers. We put them all together and shipped them out."
The pumps are a critical aspect of Curtiss-Wright's business. As just an intern, Francisco was thrust into important tasks within the company.
"On Fridays, we normally had a meeting with the testing team, mainly for brainstorming possible improvements in the department," she said. "Given my responsibilities in the summer, I was actually running those meetings. My boss gave me the attention of everyone and I came in with some of the issues I found in the testing department. I offered my solutions, took them on a tour and showed them the issues I found so they could see them with their own eyes.
"Then, I asked for their feedback or suggestions on my solutions because they're the ones working with it first-hand."
This summer, Francisco was forced to display leadership at a young age, but thanks to her development at Lehigh, she felt ready.
"I believe the way Lehigh Athletics has helped me most is through the Flight 45 Leadership Program," she said. "Lehigh really values creating leaders. They don't only focus on taking in people who are already leaders, but they also show all their athletes what it takes to be a leader and give us the support to build leaders inside out. That's given me the confidence, not just in the engineering aspects, but also in communication and reaching out to resources. It has given me the social side, and the ability to connect with my superiors."
Connecting with the right people actually gave Francisco the opportunity at Curtiss-Wright in the first place.
"In the fall, I attended the career fair offered by the Lehigh career center and went in knowing some of the companies there, including Curtiss-Wright," she said. "I had one of their positions in mind, so I asked the recruiter and he really gaged that I was interested in their company. He later reached out about an interview and coming in to meet them."
In the end, finding herself at a place like Curtiss-Wright was no surprise for Francisco.
"I've always been interested in the defense sector," she said. "I originally had a dream about going into the Navy or creating weapons for the Navy. Now, I'm able to contribute in another way, where I actually help in the process of making pumps for Naval Ships. What I'm doing really affects the country as a whole."
Francisco's focus has been on processes, specifically making processes as efficient as possible. She has a yellow belt in six sigma, which is defined as a set of management techniques intended to improve business processes by greatly reducing the probability that an error or defect will occur.
"If you try to improve something over a long period of time, you're probably not going to see results," said Francisco. "This summer, I was able to get a deeper look at continuous improvement in the workspace, which is what I want to get into when I graduate."
Francisco's growth mindset will pay dividends academically, athletically and in life after graduation.
"Anna is forging a distinctive future career," said Lehigh head coach Rob Herb. "She is so open to learning and experiencing everything she can. I believe her summer opportunity has been vital in her career plan and showing Anna how capable she is. "
Francisco still has two years before graduation, but in the meantime, the same concepts of continuous improvement are in place on the swimming and diving team.
"Our coaches tell us if we're trying to improve our technique, to focus on one thing at a time," she said. "Maybe one day we'll focus on our kick and the next day, we'll focus on our core. It really helps taking it one piece at a team, so all your focus is on one thing and you can truly improve."
At Curtiss-Wright, Francisco sought out the issues, seeing what works and what doesn't.
"It very much correlates to the pool," she said. "We're all very different swimmers, so it's tough to have all of us on the same routine. Each year, we test out what works for each swimmer. Our coaches and each of us are continuously improving our routines and habits, trying to find what will make us the best athletes we can."
Francisco is on top of her continuous improvement as a student, athlete and person, due in large part to her summer experience, which positively affected her in a multitude of ways.
"At the end of this past year, I had just started my specific engineering classes and was confused as to what I wanted to do," she said. "I felt a little lost, both in the pool and in the classroom, but this summer gave me so many opportunities to connect with people and take initiative over my own projects. It gave me a lot of confidence in how I can connect with people, and with my career skills.
"I believe it's something I'm going to bring to the pool, just because I'm confident I can lead and communicate well," Francisco continued. "That will definitely help me in the pool and the classroom."
"I have absolutely seen an increase in Anna's confidence," said Herb. "Anna is very special. Her swim and academic talents are amazing, and now, she is hitting her stride and believing in herself which is a major part of her growth. She sees the path in front of her and is so excited to race down that path."
Players Mentioned
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