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i took on two internships summer 2022 because i felt like i was too much of a designer to want to be a software engineer and too much of a technical engineer to be a designer. it was a chance to take advantage of flexible remote work hours and try something new. i really enjoyed how much design freedom i had with penn med along with the fast-paced growth of a startup

there is no title that can describe what i learned and did in a startup environment like ripple. designing pitch decks, conducting user research, prototyping new features, bringing the screens to life in swift, refactoring data models in the backend—this experience is what led me to believe that there had to be a career that combined both design and development. all in the garage of a house in menlo park, ca.

my first internship as a college student,  i was introduced to the world of web accessibility w/ screen-readers, keypress listeners, pop-ups, and more. i also learned about agile methodology by participating in sprint planning, retrospectives, and standup meetings. a product design intern and i got to collaborate on the social share redesign!

from chatting with google engineers, i learned about the 20% rule. which states that 80% of work should be dedicated to assigned tasks while 20% should be set aside for creative projects. i learned that one of my instructors recently got his pilot license and another spent his 20% teaching his kids how to play guitar. i learned the importance of setting aside time for yourself to explore and try new things. my 20% is cooking and baking.

kode with klossy is how i was introduced to computer science, at 16 years old. at the time, my family was moving from texas to new jersey and i was devastated. my mom suggested i head to austin, where my older sister went to school, and find a summer program. little did i know the summer program i applied to to take my mind off moving schools would lead to me returning as an instructor assistant and studying cs in school

while some would call me shy, i feel like a completely different person when i teach. i love that instant of realization when something clicks :~) and my students aren’t the only ones having these “aha!” moments. while teaching, i'm often struck by different perspectives that produce a deeper understanding for myself. sometimes I even find a gap in my own comprehension when i try to explain a concept. teaching pushes me to master what i’ve learned to empower others

i wrote about hack4impact in my college app to penn, so getting in my first semester of college felt pretty surreal. especially having started my first semester of school online, i met several of my first friends at penn through hack. whether it's making a huge vat of mac&cheese for our thanksgiving potluck or having a late night task session before a deadline, i know i can always count on my hack friends <3

after leading the rebrand of femmehacks my freshman year, i met a penn junior, grac(e). grac was the first person outside of my family who really encouraged me to find opportunities to design, eventually inviting me to help with the planning and eventual launch of spark, penn's first tech and design community. since then, i've led projects, launched a newsletter, taught design bootcamps, and declared a second major program ;~)