February 11, 2020
More pairs of MPA seniors and alumni mentors have been eager to share their positive experiences and connections through the MPA Mentorship Program and how it has continued to inspire them. In just its second year, a historic number of alumni participated, outnumbering the current senior class! Mentees and mentors were matched based on interests, hobbies, career goals, and college choice. See all of the photos from the networking event here!
“MPA’s mentorship program has given me a chance to learn so much information about my dream of becoming a pilot that I cannot get from the internet. I cannot describe how excited and happy I was on the first day of the mentorship program,” said MPA senior Lyndon Lyu ’20. “We started to write an email to our mentors, and I was so lucky to be paired up with Matt, who is a professional pilot. Being a pilot has been my dream since I can remember. When I was told that I was paired with a real pilot, I was like a little boy seeing his hero. In the many emails between Matt and me, mine were always so long because I had so many questions about aviation. I knew I could ask Matt anything because he knows almost everything about my dream, and for this reason, our email progress was always far ahead of the program required timeline. Thank you to MPA for arranging the mentor meeting in our new Family Commons. Meeting with Matt might be the best thing that has happened to me this year. Matt was very nice and helpful, and he told me every step that I need to do in order to be a pilot in the future. He is even willing to introduce me to some airlines after I get my pilot’s license. For all of these reasons, I am so thankful to MPA’s mentorship program, and I really appreciate Matt’s help and the time that he spent with me on this program.”
Lyndon’s mentor, MPA alum Matthew Navarro ’04, had a similarly heartwarming reflection. “I had a wonderful experience in my second year with the mentorship program. Lyndon was a great correspondent, and his interest and passion for aviation showed me he will find success in wherever the world will take him,” Matthew said. “The flying world is fortunate and better for young men and woman like Lyndon who take what unique opportunity we have to take to the skies. Any professional is humbled and appreciative when someone takes an interest in their world and his insightful questions and eagerness to learn made it a great experience. I hope I can be a tool for Lyndon in the future to guide him to his dreams in the Airlines and will always be ready for his next question. I’m looking forward to next year with such great students at MPA!”
