Extracurricular Activities
Rainbow Owls: Met and collaborated with members of the LGBTQIA community; Study Groups: Organized and led interpersonal study groups with the purpose of mentoring fellow students; Team-Building Opportunities: Weekly meetings focusing on developing team-building and interpersonal communication skills such as commitment, communication, and problem solving; Athletics: Practiced and competed in a team competitions with a focus on interpersonal communication skills and teamwork; Mentoring: Guiding young children aged 5 through 8 through various topics such as communication, teamwork, and hard work
A Little Bit About Me
I lived in a small trailer park in Medford, Oregon for the first 11 years of my life. I grew up with a single mother, so money was always tight, but I learned to make the most of what I have. I had a pretty good life up until I was 14 years old, and my family suddenly became homeless. At that point my sister and her two children had moved in with us full time, so the transition was difficult. We had five people in a 25 square ft travel trailer that we had to move from RV park to RV park. During that time, I found comfort in my schoolwork, because there was always something new to learn, and each topic was more interesting than the last. Some of my favorite subjects were reading and writing as they gave me a chance to be creative and express my feelings about the things I had been through.
Why I Chose Oregon Tech and My Major
I chose Oregon Tech because of the class sizes and the great professors here in the CSET department. Having a more personal relationship with professors is important to me and I was able to find that here. I chose my major because I love audio-animatronics, and Embedded Systems was the best fit for that goal, I also chose to major in Software because I really enjoy coding and its challenges.
My Influential Professors
My most influential professors at Oregon Tech are Troy Scevers and Todd Breedlove. Troy is my advisor, and he has been a great help in navigating the different courses and skills such as how to register on time. Similarly, Todd has been a big inspiration to me as a student. He's always encouraging and helpful. He's always willing to help, even if it's not even for his class. Being in his classes and getting to know him have drastically improved my experience here at Oregon Tech and he continues to be a major influence on me.
My Greatest Learning Experience At Oregon Tech
My greatest learning experience here at Oregon Tech has definitely been my experience with CST116: Introduction to C++ with Todd Breedlove. Prior to attending Oregon Tech, I had no coding experience, and nothing to draw on in class. Even though I had no foundational knowledge, I was able to succeed because of Todd Breedlove and his amazing teaching style. Because of his class I have a strong foundation to stand on going forward into my degrees.
My Plans After Graduation
I plan to work for a company that specializes in Audio-Animatronics, whether that be for a major theme park such as Universal Studios or Disney, or a smaller company. My ultimate career goal is to make more realistic animatronics in terms of movement. Animatronics are a great tool for engaging the audience, and they've captivated me since I was little and riding Pirates of The Carribean at Disneyland with my mother for the first time.