Elinor Mayo wants to fly.
She also wants to pursue a career in law enforcement.
To accomplish those goals, she had a plan. She enrolled at UMass Lowell to study criminal justice, and she joined the Air Force ROTC program. Always up for a challenge, she also entered the UML Honors College.
“I always wanted to have a cool job where I am in the middle of the action,” Mayo says. “When I was in seventh grade, I decided I wanted to be a fighter pilot because in my head, that was the most amazing job I could ever have. If I push myself hard enough, it might be within reach.”
As time passed, she saw it as a career.
“It became something I can see myself doing for a very long time, and something that I see myself forever enjoying,” Mayo says. “It is intense, demanding and, best of all, honorable. I am pursuing a commission in the U.S. Air Force so I can attempt to become a pilot.”
Right in front of her was the reason to study criminal justice, and it wasn’t just Law and Order: SVU or Criminal Justice. Her father was a police officer in Portland, Maine, when her parents met. His work inspired her.
“I have always respected our justice system and have wanted to learn more about it,” she says.
UMass Lowell offered an ideal spot to merge her dreams – “close to home (Jamaica Plain), affordable and a great school,” Mayo says.