My internship at Miller Electric company has come to a close. And what better way to finish it out than hopping back into the model I’ve been hard at work in for the last 4 weeks of this summer. Daisy chaining. That is the word of the week and a term used to describe what I had to model when weaving my way under and over structural beams. The runs, or “daisy chains,” were created by cutting the conduit into 4 sections in a section view, rotating the middle two sections of the run, and trim connecting them in 3d to form a smooth wave of conduit. Since the conduit encountered multiple cross sections with HVAC the technique described above was used on several occasions. I will say it became rather satisfying to repeat the process. Seeing how smooth a clash free run looked as it glided over the HVAC. I could not have had a successful internship without all the support of the talent team, my managers, and my fellow interns and VDC employees. Although my summer at Miller is coming to an end, my time at this company is not. I hope to continue to model in this job here and there during the school year, as long as it does not disrupt my studies and life as a student athlete. I am very grateful to have been an intern at such an amazing company.
The second to last week of camp is about Paleontology! I was still sticking with the younger kids this week. We watched a cute Planetarium show called Dinosaurs, a Story of Survival that had pretty good animation and storytelling. It was about a girl who goes back in time with a magic narrator to learn about how dinosaurs lived and got wiped out.
After the morning show, I assisted the teacher in cutting out dinosaur silhouettes for the kids to paste onto backgrounds that they painted.
During lunchtime, I’ve been watching both of the older groups in the auditorium. The secret is to put on Phineas and Ferb and they stay quiet and focus on eating… for the most part.
On Friday, a girl from the older class, in a moment of astounding wisdom, lodged one of the 7- to 9-year-old’s phone in the pretend cash register in the pizza area. It got stuck behind the drawer and the whole thing had to be taken a part to get the phone out.
The last week of camp, (and my last week at MOAS,) is themed around art. Except for the older kids who have a Harry Potter theme which is honestly so freaking cool!! On Monday, I spent some time with the 7- to 9-year-olds. The teacher walked us through the museum and focused the kids’ attention on various artworks, specifically painted portraits. When we got back to the classroom after looking around, they grouped into pairs and drew their partner’s portrait. Letting the children observe artworks beforehand was a smart move in prefacing how they could go about drawing each other.
The teacher also hung fishing line across the room (this man is crazy,) and had the kids create craft chandeliers with string and cardstock paper. It was very fun to watch, and the kids had a blast!!
Overall, every single person who I have met at MOAS has been more than kind and welcoming. The teachers and staff members are highly qualified people who are dedicated to the institution. It truly has been a pleasure to observe and work alongside them all.
I have transitioned from helping out with the older kids to the 5- and 6-year-old classroom. On Monday I shadowed the class for the day and assisted the teacher. The switch up from older children to kindergarten age kids was something else. The pace that they move at is a lot slower but somehow twice the amount of energy is present. They’re great kids; it was just quite a bit to take in at first. One activity we did was a collage where they decorated a paper robot and then pasted it together onto cardstock.
At one point we also stepped outside to look at the fountain near the front and give the kids some sun. It is so pretty!! I think it might genuinely be my favorite spot at MOAS. There are plenty of tadpoles and snails in the fountain, and beautiful lotus flowers that will pop up at random.
I came in an extra day on Thursday to watch over the class with another intern and volunteer since the teacher was out for a couple days. I improvised some activity ideas to go along with the week’s theme of science, and it went surprisingly well!! We did “fossil” imprints with air dry clay, mini lava lamps, and paper airplanes. For last minute ideas and my first time overseeing a class to this degree, I think I really knocked it out of the park. The kids had a great time, and I got genuine experience in how draining but rewarding managing a young class is.
On Friday, my supervisor and I did a fun skittle activity to compare if food dye dissolves faster with hot or cold water.
We also took the little ones outdoors to draw with chalk. Here’s a couple of their masterpieces –
The Summer Learning Institute took a break during this week, so not a whole lot was going on. I really just helped around with some small tasks. I lent a hand in re-stocking the pizza area by adding new toppings and folding delivery boxes. When walking around the children’s wing with a couple really cool employees, they pointed out one of the fabric pizza doughs stuck in the ceiling. This made me laugh too hard because I realized how talented kids are at throwing stuff all over the place.
I had done this specific task a few times before, but I also helped staple, hole-punch, and alphabetize students’ release forms into two binders. One is for the Education staff to keep, and the other has copies that the front security desk holds on to. These babies were packed!! I could barely close them.
Great news is the 10- to 13-year-olds had their new teacher come in! She had previously taught at the summer camp last year and came in with her mom this week to collect as many materials from the crafts closet as possible to prep her curriculum. I searched around with them for as many items as possible by looking at her printed lists of what she needed. She and her mom were super nice and very well organized.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t find everything listed, because the other teachers had practically cleared the closet. What she did find she stored inside bins and placed them up high with a bunch of notes claiming her territory.
The second week of summer camp was space themed!! Since the 10- to 13-year-olds were still out of a teacher, my supervisors in education plus planetarium staff were in charge of them. This week was very cool, I enjoyed learning some amazing astronomy facts and watching shows in the Lohman Planetarium with the kids. I highly recommend this one incredible show that we watched, From Earth to the Universe. It’s a high-quality animated visualization of how our solar system was formed starting from as far back as theories go. It was super fascinating to see and really put into perspective how coincidental our world’s existence is.
The kids did a lot of fun activities: they got to see a dry ice demonstration, paint hand prints onto a paper moon, set off decorated rockets in the museum auditorium through hoops, and represent the solar system outside with inflatable planets by spinning around each other (yes, it was as cute as it sounds.)
Here’s photos in order of all the activities (save for the kids rotating around each other because photos of them are prohibited, but I put picture of a felt solar system to compensate) –
I also stayed with the 10- 13-year-olds for the fourth week of camp, which was about engineering. They worked together to build a pulley by following an instruction manual and did a pretty dang good job at it!!
They also used popsicle sticks to design buildings –
Lastly, an older gentleman who actually is a retired engineer that developed a lot of the interactive features in the museum’s kid’s wing came in to talk about his work as a guest speaker. He answered questions and gave a lot of interesting insight into his profession!
This week, I focused heavily on my final project. Just to clarify how I conducted the survey: I posted it as a student working on a school project about COACH, not as a brand employee. I felt it was important to make that distinction, as I don’t have the authority to represent the brand officially, and presenting myself that way could be compromising for both me and COACH. So I chose to keep it neutral.
I only received 18 responses (which wasn’t the number I was aiming for), but those 18 participants were incredibly engaged. Many of them wrote in-depth responses about their experiences with the brand, and their feedback was extremely insightful. I plan to quote a few of their comments in my final presentation to reinforce my key points with real voices from the audience.
As for the presentation itself, I’m planning to open it with a look at some of the most viral content from the past two years — analyzing what they have in common and why they went viral. The answer? They all share the same quality: authenticity. Real life, unfiltered, unscripted content. Just real people doing real things. I think this is a strong way to start the presentation and get the audience thinking about why “real” content resonates so deeply, especially with Gen Z, who are craving authenticity, experience, and community. And the main place they seek that is on social media. Brands either adapt to this shift or risk being left behind.
I did a lot of research and found valuable data from recent Vogue Business reports, including performance insights from top fashion brands. The data shows how social media presence and engagement directly correlate with brand growth. Brands like Jacquemus and Dior are evolving by becoming more approachable and relatable online — a major shift from the traditional luxury image of exclusivity and distance. People now want to feel represented. They want authenticity, diversity, and emotional connection — and that is exactly the foundation of my project.
I also made great progress on the visual elements of my presentation. Using Canva AI, I created an interactive, simulated chat between a customer and a COACH sales associate. This supports one of my key strategies: clienteling. It’s all about creating a direct communication channel between the brand and the customer. Not just to support the purchase decision, but to build a deeper, more human connection. My presentation follows the “show, don’t tell” approach — no long bullet points or dense slides. Instead, I’m using visuals, examples, mockups, videos, and links to make everything seamless and easy to understand. That’s where my interest in UX really comes into play.
On the corporate side, we had two amazing calls this week. The first was about the COACH (Re)Loved + Sustainability initiative. This program transforms old, irreparable bags into something completely new and unique, giving them a second life. The call focused on how sustainability is not just an environmental responsibility, but also a key purchasing factor for younger generations. COACH is prioritizing sustainable practices more than ever, understanding that this shift is both urgent and expected by consumers.
The second call was all about career growth and interview tips, led by the Talent Acquisition team. It was especially valuable because they offered specific guidance for interviews with Tapestry, in case we decide to pursue roles within the company in the future. They explained the types of questions they ask, what they’re looking for in candidates, and the rationale behind their process. As someone who is definitely interested in returning to the brand, I found this session incredibly helpful and motivating.
During Week 7 of the internship, we had a call with a group of leaders from COACH who are part of a program called ACT — an elite initiative for store and general managers. We learned about the structure of the program, who participates, how it’s implemented, and the results it generates. The ACT program includes top-performing store managers from across the U.S., and each participant is challenged to develop a year-long project focused on analyzing different teams and stores at COACH. The goal is to create a plan that helps them grow as leaders, and also support the development of others through mentorship.
Throughout this internship, I’ve already learned a lot about leadership. But this conversation helped me understand the more technical side of it: how to approach colleagues, how to inspire rather than give orders, how to communicate clearly and meaningfully, how to set goals, and how to navigate difficult conversations — whether it’s about performance, expectations, or customer interactions. It was incredibly valuable to gain practical strategies that go beyond theory. Sometimes people assume being a leader is just about directing others, but I’m learning that real leadership is about guidance, connection, and setting an example.
Later in the week, we visited the COACH retail store at the Mall at Millenia to observe their daily operations, customer experience, business performance, and visual merchandising. It was both insightful and engaging — and admittedly a bit challenging because I wanted every single bag in the store (so yes, I also had to practice self-control! kkkkkkk).
We reviewed their KPIs and compared them to outlet store performance. For instance, the total weekly sales volume in retail is often what outlets can achieve in just a few hours. However, the retail customer experience is elevated. Thanks to the calmer environment, retail teams can fully implement the COACH service approach: Connect, Build, Close, and Continue. It was interesting to compare both segments and see how they complement each other — outlets drive business volume, while retail stores sustain the brand identity and deepen customer relationships.
We were also introduced to a new project this week: a business performance presentation to Glenn King, Divisional Vice President. Interns are pairing up — I’ll be working with Marlo since we’re placed at the same location — to analyze our store’s business dashboard and present KPIs, customer demographics, product performance, and business insights. It mirrors the presentations store managers deliver to COACH leadership, and it’s an opportunity for us to train and develop our technical and analytical skills.
Although it’s a bit overwhelming considering our final project presentation is scheduled for August 5 and this one is on August 8, I’m genuinely excited. It’s another opportunity to apply what I’ve learned, showcase my skills, and gain a deeper understanding of the business. As a Digital Arts major with a strong interest in marketing, I really value experiences like this — especially since I don’t always get this level of business exposure through my marketing minor. I’m embracing every learning opportunity and challenge with enthusiasm.
A long week to put it simply. With class and football season starting up and being thrown into the mix of finishing the internship strong. I was still working in the same floor going through the routine of clash detection. Megan’s wondrous trick of the week for me was within Navis again. You can move and manipulate the conduit within Navis to gauge how much you have to move something on vertically or horizontally. Transforming and being able to see what the move will look like in Navis before I change it in the model is a game changer. Unlike using the measuring tool to just get the calculation of how far I need to move the conduit, I get to actually see what the result will be for an entire run or the specific clash I am trying to avoid. This tool has a similar function to adjusting and transforming the entire floor and sections of what you are able to see
The highlighted blue box in the bottom left corner allows you to pin the screen down so you don’t have to keep opening it up as you move around.
The blue red and green arrows is exactly the same for when using the move tool for sectioning off areas and different levels.
Next week will be more of the same work until the exit interviews and the wrapping up of the summer. Discussing the work I’ve done, and laying down what the next steps look like here at Miller! This summer has definitely flown by!
After multiple sessions of recording podcasts and interviews, week 8 was spent on editing and communicating with the recording studio. No cameras were rolling, but the lessons we learned were no less important.
Editing Marathon
With the recording paused, we had some time to finish editing our old interview. First was the 50-minute Daryl Davis interview from Courageous Conversations. I incorporated Dr. Lua’s feedback, made color correction changes, and added an outro. I exported it, and after the review, it was fully ready for publishing.
Next came the interviews with Alan Ginsburg and Marc McMurrin. They were shorter, cleaner, and mostly raw – it required much less editing work compared to Daryl’s lengthy interview. By mid-week, both were rendered and ready for final approval. We still have minor changes to make in those interviews, but they are mostly done too. Dr. Lua’s interview is still in the works, but I am confident that we can finish it relatively soon. Each finished project is a little checkpoint that reminds me how much this internship experience has taught me in just eight weeks.
Communication with Recording Studio
While exporting video footage, a bigger problem arose: the July 10 Let’s Get Deep session returned as fifty minutes of complete darkness for one of the guests’ videos – perfect audio, no video. Hi-Hello’s system didn’t capture the footage on their system, and their camera backups weren’t started.
I wrote a detailed email explaining the loss and asking for clarity, a refund, or at least a credit for a reshoot. Their reply was, “We do not have any backup. We did not handle the recording; therefore, it is not our responsibility.” This was, after we had double-checked with them that everything was good to go. There was no refund, but it was a valuable lesson, as I have previously not had an experience with resolving such problems.
Reflection
Week eight showed that post-production is part creativity and part crisis management. Turning raw interviews into ready-to-publish material feels great, but finding a black screen where footage should be does not. The studio’s response was not as we expected, but it pushed us to tighten our workflow and have multiple checks before starting the recording.
Another week of the same work as the last. Lots of clash detection and moving conduit out of the way of HVAC. A trick I learned in Navisworks, the software that shows other trades, you can section off only what I want to export from Revit to Navis. The export feature allows you to append only what you have modeled to compare with the trades. This helps to not overload the software and make it run smoothly when you are trying to work quickly in one specific area. The model can also be refreshed without having to reopen it constantly.
Once inside Navis you can look up specific conduit IDs and then look up the precise location of it in Revit. This helps to find what you need to move instantly instead of having to scroll around and compare the floor in Navis and Revit. Navis also has a measuring tool. It can adjust and snap to the all sides of two objects you are trying to measure between. A very helpful tool when trying to fit conduit into tight spaces that need exact measurements. The Navis software also allows you to view every floor of the building or project. As well as adjust that floor and check on and off different planes for different floors or adjust horizontally or vertically what is displayed
Here is a picture of the measuring tool. Getting the measurement of the side of one conduit to another.
This picture is the exported file from Revit appended to the Navis main file along with the refresh button when changes are made.
These two pictures are showing how you can lookup the conduit IDs from Navis to Revit
Although this week was more of the same as the past couple it was no less rewarding and fulfilling.
