Last week, we featured four women who made notable contributions to the environmental & engineering fields over the course of their careers. As Women’s History Month draws to a close, we wanted to share some stories of the women who are making history right here at TriMedia. Some of them work on the front lines and some behind the scenes, but each of them have found professional success in their (sometimes nontraditional) path to the world environmental & engineering consulting.
Anna Niendorf, Staff Accountant
Anna graduated from Northern Michigan University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, concentration in English and language arts. Upon graduation, she began teaching preschool at a renowned child development center in Marquette County and served on the board for the Upper Peninsula’s branch of the National Association for the Education of Young People.
“Miss Anna” loved making a difference in her community, but ultimately decided to switch gears and join the team at TriMedia. Making the transition from the education system to a career in environmental & engineering has turned out to be a great experience for Anna as she has successfully taken on an expansive set of responsibilities in the accounting and inventory management departments. Although the nature of her work is completely different from what she was used to, she finds her work at TriMedia to be engaging and challenging, and still experiences the fulfillment of impacting communities for the better.
[su_quote]TriMedia helps to make our communities healthy and safe; it’s important to me that I work for a company that does just that.[/su_quote]
Amber Senn, Senior Scientist
Amber earned her Bachelor of Science in Environmental and Hazardous Materials Management from University of Findlay and later continued on to graduate school at Bowling Green State University where she studied geology, specializing in geophysics. After earning her masters, she worked in the environmental division of one of America’s largest publicly traded companies. Although Amber was technically based out of Cincinnati, her position allowed her to travel widely. For nearly five years Amber worked in Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, Colorado, and Alaska completing pipeline preconstruction surveys, finally ending up in Michigan for two years working on a river restoration project.
Amber relocated to Minot, North Dakota where she continued providing oil field related environmental consulting and response services. She joined the team at TriMedia shortly thereafter and has put her extensive knowledge and experience to work, specializing in geophysics, due diligence, wetland delineations, site remediation, and multimedia site assessments in addition to oil and gas preconstruction surveys. She is also involved with subsurface soil and water characterization, hydrogeology, groundwater modeling activities, remedial technology evaluation, and implementation of remedial actions for soil and groundwater. Amber says she loves the culture at TriMedia because not only do they care about their clients, but also their employees.
[su_quote]The balance at TriMedia allows employees to both grow within the company and help the company grow as well.[/su_quote]
Melissa L. Harrington, Business Manager
Melissa earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Entrepreneurship from St. Cloud State University and went on to secure a solid clerical background. Her administrative capacities are wide-ranging, having at various points in her career been entrusted with managing confidential documentation and maintaining an organized and efficient office environment. She is also well-versed developing and maintaining a company-wide, employee-oriented culture that emphasizes high quality, excellent service and continuous improvement.
After joining TriMedia in Arizona, Melissa has taken on numerous human resources responsibilities and actively participates in nationwide business development endeavors. Melissa wholeheartedly appreciates her position at TriMedia because every day, she contributes to building up the company and the team who makes it all possible.
[su_quote]I enjoy interacting with all levels of employees in a team approach; and being involved in business development which is aimed at creating and implementing growth opportunities for the organization as a whole.[/su_quote]
Hilary L. Smith, Social Marketing & Brand Communications
Hilary graduated from Western Michigan University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and concentration in film, video, and media studies. Upon graduation, Hilary continued working in retail management and sales, eventually deciding that she wanted to explore an alternative career path.
After joining TriMedia, Hilary has honed in on web development, graphic design, and social media marketing while operating out of an office in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. Although this business is a complete change from her previous experience, Hilary says she has grown to truly appreciate the work TriMedia does, and couldn’t be happier to have the opportunity to exercise her creativity while working towards achieving larger company goals.
[su_quote]TriMedia makes it their priority to focus on delivering high-quality services to their clients during every project, but never loses sight of treating their workforce with the utmost respect and consideration. The best part is that they do it all while making the world a better place to live and work.[/su_quote]