By Grace Cooper
An aspiring geophysicist, intern and geoscience major William Fabrocini (B.A. ‘22) was first in line when the opportunity came to work with a geosciences professor through the Geospatial Centroid at the CSU Libraries.
Unfortunately, the pandemic hit right after he was hired.
“I immediately went into working from home and diving headfirst into this project because I had so many hours of nothing to do,” said Fabrocini. “I’ve been lucky in the aspect where I was able to take the initial project and break down a bunch of barriers that I didn’t know how to do – that all of us at the Centroid didn’t know how to do.”
Working — and mapping — from home
The initial project Fabrocini worked on is a 3D geological mapping of Owl Canyon, near Livermore, Colorado. Using drone data, the goal is to create an online model that can be used as a resource for students or for anyone interested.
“In theory, students would have access to this webpage where they can zoom in and click on stuff and learn about it and understand when these layers were deposited,” he said.
“If there’s ever another semester like COVID, we want to make something that could potentially be the best alternative for a field trip for a geoscience student.”
A hands-on learning experience
In his year of working at the Centroid, Fabrocini has come to realize what a valuable experience these hands-on opportunities are. Applying the skills he learns in class has helped him visualize what his career field will be like once he graduates. Additionally, he speaks about the value of community in the Centroid.
“Everyone’s got their project that they work on, but at the end of the day, we’re all also helping when someone says, ‘I need an extra set of eyes on this,’” he said. “That’s where working in the Centroid really completes and rounds out my experience. It’s like, OK, I have the knowledge to do it, and now I have the experience and support to accomplish it.”
You can help student workers succeed
The Library Student Employee Support fund was created to help us continue to provide students with meaningful employment and the opportunity to develop valuable workplace skills through their work at Morgan Library, like the opportunities at the Geospatial Centroid.