C-NS Grad Building Her Career Foundation at OCC

Kenna Maring is on her way to a successful career designing and building things. During her final year in the Architectural Technology degree program she's turned a job shadow opportunity at VIP Structures into an internship. What started as a one-day-a-week internship will grow into 40 hours a week this summer. "I've learned so much there. The biggest lesson has been collaboration. It's huge. There are so many working parts to a construction project. I have meetings with accountants, I have meetings with project managers, and I have meetings with superintendents. We all work together."

Three years ago, Maring was an honor student at Cicero-North Syracuse High School when she received her diploma and decided to attend a four-year college. After one year there, she came to Onondaga Community College. "Everything the (Architectural Technology) program here had to offer was very attractive to me. The fact Interior Design was also offered made it a good place to start."

One of Maring's career inspirations is home renovation power couple Chip and Joanna Gaines. In their television series "Fixer Upper," they transform dilapidated homes into showplaces. Joanna is the designer and Chip is the project manager. "I was so attracted to their message. They were giving people such joy with what they did. They were so inspiring."

Maring has brought that inspiration and passion to VIP Structures where her title is Project Technician Intern. She was recently featured in a video about women in construction which you can view by clicking on this link.

For the last month she's been working on the construction of the Nexus Center in Utica, a 170,000 square foot facility which will include three hockey rinks, commercial office space, classrooms, retail stores, and a fitness track. "I like the versatility in project management. Some days we're in the office, some days we're in the field, some days are filled with meetings, some days we're talking with each other, and some days we're working on our own. I love the interaction and the variety in project management."

Just as Maring has valued her experience, her partners at VIP feel fortunate to have her as part of their team. "She hasn't been hesitant to jump in when called upon by the estimating, procurement, and project management teams to assist. As I observe Kenna's journey and listen to colleague's feedback, the profound impact of the intern/mentor relationships has been unmistakable," said Cynthia Hernandez, Chief People Strategist at VIP Structures.

Maring will complete her Architectural Technology degree next month. "Even though there were some bumps in the road along the way, I'm so proud of myself and so excited to graduate in May."

In the fall she'll be enrolled in SUNY-ESF's Construction Management program. Her big dream is to one day start her own business building barndominiums. "They're a combination of barns and condominiums. It's a work space and living space under one roof. They're very energy efficient, quick to build, pretty trendy, and you can get a lot of square footage. There are a lot of benefits on the design/build side."