Senior Women's Lacrosse Co-Captains Casey Sullivan and Anna Deely know how to get the job done on and off the field. This winter, the facilities engineering majors put no time to waste when they traded in their cleats for clipboards and went to work completing local Co-Ops.

Senior midfielder Casey Sullivan worked at Green Seal Environmental, Inc. (GSE)  with the Civil Survey and Engineering Department as a "Reality Capture" technician. Green Seal Environmental is a multi-disciplined firm which assists a range of clients in achieving their engineering and environmental objectives. Headquartered in Sagamore Beach, Mass., the company is contracted by every Steward Health Care facility in the United States to survey and scan their locations using cutting edge 3D Laser Scanning technology. Casey was trained on how to properly use this technology during April of 2020 when she completed her first co-op with Green Seal and was placed at Norwood Hospital after the facility experienced a devastating flood. Casey's role on the team was to scan every inch of the hospital, equipping other team members to create a 3D model which was used to help rebuild the entire campus. 

This past winter, Casey and Co-Captain Senior Midfielder Anna crossed paths at Steward Health Cares' Fall River, Mass. facility, St. Anne's Hospital. 

At the St. Anne's facility Anna spent her winter working for Green Seal Environmental's client, Steward Health Care, shadowing Casey and recording data related to the laser scans that were being conducted. The integrity of this data is critically important and is used to ensure that the final product, a perfectly scaled 3D model of the facility, is properly coded and labeled which has to be done manually after the laser scan is completed. 

Green Seal Environmental President and Mass. Maritime Alumna Heather Twiss '97 had the chance to comment on the work and training that was conducted over the past month. "This Co-Op offers facilities engineers the opportunity to be trained on cutting edge technology while being exposed to literally every aspect of the medical facility. In this project the cadets had to learn how to work, coordinate, and schedule with all the departments in a hospital. In normal circumstances some of these spaces can be difficult to get into but it was especially challenging with the added obstacle of COVID-19." 

With COVID-19 creating additional challenges for the pair, Anna spoke to how their experience on the field translated to work in the facility. "There were a lot of parts of the hospital that were blocked off, or would be open one day and then closed the next because of COVID-19 exposures or air flow patterns throughout the facility. Casey and I had to effectively communicate with each other and the various departments to ensure we always knew the Plan of the Day. It was extremely important for our health and others that we knew which areas we were granted access to. It was a lot easier to get this done efficiently because we work and communicate so well together on the field so it makes sense that we would work well off as well." 

Deely added, "Working with Heather [Twiss] has been awesome because she is such a great role model for Casey and I to look up to. She helped facilitate my Co-Op with Steward [Health Care] when Casey told her that I was still looking for an internship for the winter. It is awesome to see another MMA graduate and former Buccaneer athlete doing big things in this industry who is willing to help current students get experience in the field."

Once their cooperative learning experience concludes Anna and Casey will return to Buzzards Bay for the second half of their senior years and their final season as members of the Buccaneer women's lacrosse team with their eyes on graduation and what lies beyond Massachusetts Maritime Academy.