Margi (Heiss ’18) Brunson returned to campus to share her work experience as a chemist in a seminar for students and faculty.
“As a student, I always wanted to see how my major would help me earn a living,” Brunson said. “So I think it is important to come back to campus and inspire students and show them that their efforts will be worth it in the end.”
Grove City College’s Career Fair and a series of other related events led to an internship with Jamestown Coating Technologies the summer before her senior year that turned into a full-time position as a paint and coatings chemist after graduation.
“I work on General Industrial and Flexible Packaging coatings that are applied to steel or aluminum foils. I help with new product development, color matching, and some quality control, so I am continuously making small samples of paint, applying them to the appropriate metal, and testing the cured paint’s properties,” she said.
Brunson talked to current students last month about her company, which is an industrial lab and production facility, and described the components of paint and how it is made a tested.
“I was impressed by the practicality of the chemistry she does –formulating paints to exhibit specific colors and properties and also by the fact that she really likes her job and work community,” Dr. Mike Falcetta, professor of Chemistry, said.
Grove City College helped her to prepare both academically and spiritually for her job. Her time in the chemistry lab in school directly applies to her lab work now. “My time at Grove City College also taught me how to behave as a Christian outside the walls of church, which helps me work with my co-workers and bosses in a positive and God-centered manner,” she said.