Q&A: Presidential Ambassador and Class of 2026 speaker ready for his ‘dream job’

Skip to content Q&A: Presidential Ambassador and Class of 2026 speaker ready for his ‘dream job’ April 17, 2026 Class of 2026 Becoming a Presidential Ambassador set Jorgeandrés Alvarez-Lopez ’26 on a path leading to a professional internship, his “dream job,” and an opportunity to address his fellow graduates as the Class of 2026 student speaker at Florida Polytechnic University’s commencement ceremony on May 9. He said it’s everything he ever wanted. Alvarez-Lopez, who will receive a bachelor’s degree in computer science with a concentration in software engineering, assisted with the 2025 commencement as a Presidential Ambassador and was captivated by the student speaker’s message. “It got me thinking that I also had some important things to say,” Alvarez-Lopez said. Since then, he has been collecting bits of wisdom and life lessons to include in his own hoped-for address. “I want to encourage the graduates to remember that they have to always be students and keep striving to learn,” the Puerto Rico native said. After graduation, Alvarez-Lopez will transition from his internship at Engineering & Computer Simulations (ECS) in Orlando to a full-time role as a test engineer at the company – a role made possible through connections he developed as a Florida Poly Presidential Ambassador. While at the University, Alvarez-Lopez also worked as a research assistant and lifeguard and was active in IEEE, the Roboboat team, and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers. Why did you choose your major? I’ve always had a love of video games, software and the internet, so it was my mission to learn as much as I possibly could about computers on the inside, the software side, because the world of software is ever-changing and ever-growing. I wanted to code from the very beginning and learn all these different software languages, so I knew I wanted to go into software engineering. How well do you feel Florida Poly prepared you for life after graduation? What hasn’t Florida Poly prepared me for? This school has prepared me to be ready academically, socially, technologically – there are so many things that I’ve worked with here that I know are going to be used in the field. What was your favorite course and why? I took object-oriented programming during my sophomore year with Dr. Igor Mirsalikhov, and he is so smart and speaks so plainly and directly that it’s hard not to love how he teaches. It was tough, but I wanted to go to his class and be taught by him. I also just love object-oriented programming in general because we learned Java, which is an object-oriented programming language that we’re going to use in the workplace. Where did you complete your internship(s) and what did you gain from the experience? My current internship with ECS turned directly into my full-time job offer. I gave a campus tour to the CEO and a vice president of the company as a Presidential Ambassador and I always reach out afterward – that’s something the Presidential Ambassadors program taught me. Two months later, they messaged me back and asked me to come to a convention where I met so many people, and a week after that, I started my internship. It was so amazing. What are your plans after graduation? I can’t go into too much detail because of clearance requirements, but I can say that I’ll be a test engineer at ECS working on computer simulations for military leadership. I’m in the process of getting my government clearance for them now and I’m so excited. I’ve been working since day one to get a job like this. I have a lot to look forward to, but I wouldn’t be here without the Presidential Ambassadors. What advice do you have for new students? Life is full of leaps of faith. The more leaps you take and the more you learn, the more confident you become. It’s so important to step outside your comfort zone. Editor’s note: This story is part of a series of Q&As featuring Florida Poly Class of 2026 graduates. 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Attendees will learn actionable and simple strategies that are easy to implement, enabling them to start immediately by focusing on their top risks to build greater operational resilience and ensure the sustained success of their auxiliary enterprises. Presenter Profile Michelle Powell serves as the pioneering Risk Manager at Florida Polytechnic University, the state’s sole 100% STEM-dedicated institution. Having been with the university for nearly 11 years, Michelle transitioned from a leadership role in Admissions in October 2023 to establish and evolve the risk management function from the ground up. In this solo capacity, Michelle builds robust frameworks for our dynamic, young university, overseeing our insurance portfolio, consulting on third-party and event risks, and developing critical campus-wide training programs. Michelle has obtained the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) Enterprise Risk Management certificate and the Associate in Risk Management (ARM) and Construction Risk and Insurance Specialist (CRIS) designations. Her distinct background in mathematics and engineering, combined with extensive higher education leadership, brings an analytical and strategic approach enhancing the institution’s resilience.