Photo by Annika Servin
Who Am I?
I am a Software Engineering student at Rochester Institute of Technology originally from Chambersburg, PA. I am a technology enthusiast with a passion for software and have involved myself with many projects, both in and out of school. In 2015, I was fortunate enough to receive a scholarship to attend Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference. This site serves as my online portfolio, providing more details than any résumé could ever hold.
Education
My education comes in 3 chapters: a private Christian school for K–8, a non-traditional public high school for 9–12, and Rochester Institute of Technology now. Here, I focus on the latter two.
Software Engineering, Rochester Institute of Technology — 2016–2021
Rochester Institute of Technology is a prestigious private university excellently prepping its students for the work force. Many majors at RIT, including Software Engineering, are five-year programs that include two semesters and a summer of required co-op at companies of the student's choice. The university has relationships with hundreds of prestigious companies including Apple, Google, and Microsoft; and visits from companies take place frequently.
Chambersburg Area Career Magnet School (CMS) — 2012–2016
CMS is an innovative high school offering non-traditional education using project-based learning and emphasizing career-readiness. Here, every student has an iPad, every teacher a MacBook, and every classroom an Apple TV. In late 2015, after I and other students and faculty assisted with the application process, CMS was designated as an Apple Distinguished School, and I gave a speech at the ceremony where the designation was received.
My Contributions and Accomplishments
Assisted in the application process for CMS to become an Apple Distinguished School, and gave speech to students and faculty when the designation was received
Worked with others to develop CMS Now, an iOS app now being used by hundreds of students to view the daily announcements
Assisted in inception of a new iOS App Development class that became reality in my senior year
Salutatorian of my senior class
4.0 unweighted GPA each quarter
Completed 10 AP classes/exams
President of CMS Technology Club from 2013–2016
Team Captain of CMS Robotics Team from 2015–2016
Vice President of CMS National Honor Society from 2015–2016
Director of Software for CMS Robotics Team from 2013–2015
Member of CMS National Honor Society from 2014–2016
Member of CMS Bible Club from 2014–2016
Go-to student for students and staff experiencing technical issues
Paid Job Experience
Intern Software Engineer, Apple — Summer 2019
In summer 2019, I worked with Apple's iWork team to add a prototype feature to Pages, Numbers, and Keynote.
My Contribution
Worked on iOS and macOS versions of Pages, Numbers, and Keynote.
Collaborated with Design and Marketing for specifications and mock-ups.
Intern Software Engineer, Apple — Summer/Fall 2018
From late May to mid December 2018, I returned to Apple's Localization and Release Engineering team. This time I got to focus entirely on a suite of Swift apps and frameworks.
My Contribution
Responsible for building native macOS project management application for internal localization project managers.
Integrated the app with other apps, tools, and a central cloud.
Worked with others to perform user research and design said application.
Intern Software Engineer, Apple — Summer 2017
In the summer of 2017, I interned at Apple on the Localization and Release Engineering team. The experience taught me a lot, and I got to work on internal tools that would impact other teams in meaningful ways.
My Contribution
Worked to streamline the process of efficiently reusing translations in help documentation.
Worked on a suite of interrelated tools managed by the team.
Intern Software Developer, Global Data Consultants (GDC) — Summer 2016
In the summer of 2016, I interned at Global Data Consultants. Here, I worked with a team of three other interns to iteratively develop a web app for internal use in the HR department, each of us writing thousands of lines of code.
My Contribution
Wrote and modified various software subsystems in the web app's backend, including a Statistics engine for analytics and a backend authentication/authorization system
Wrote and modified front-end code
Worked to fix bugs in production and development software
Deployed and merged all code with a centralized Subversion (SVN) code repository
Technologies Used
Microsoft's .NET framework in a C# backend
Windows Authentication for an enterprise computer network
Backbone.JS, HTML, and CSS for frontend development
SQL database managed with Microsoft SQL Server
Skills
Leadership | Speaking
Apple's standard for excellence in presentations also extends to internal presentations, and this taught me a lot about how to make a stellar performance. Additionally, in my high school career at CMS, I was President of the Technology Club, Team Captain of the Robotics Team, Vice President of the NHS, Director of Software for the Robotics Team. Also at CMS, I gave frequent presentations to audiences of various sizes and several speeches to large groups of the student body and parents.
Apple's standard for excellence in presentations also extends to internal presentations, and this taught me a lot about how to make a stellar performance. Additionally, in my high school career at CMS, I was President of the Technology Club, Team Captain of the Robotics Team, Vice President of the NHS, Director of Software for the Robotics Team. Also at CMS, I gave frequent presentations to audiences of various sizes and several speeches to large groups of the student body and parents.
Programming Languages
I have worked with (in order of most fluent to least fluent): Swift, C#, Java, Python, Objective-C/++, C, Ruby, SQL, Javascript, Perl, CSS, HTML, and LABView.
I have worked with (in order of most fluent to least fluent): Swift, C#, Java, Python, Objective-C/++, C, Ruby, SQL, Javascript, Perl, CSS, HTML, and LABView.
Video Editing | Graphic Design | 3D Drafting/Printing
CMS gave me much experience with video editing, graphic design, and 3D drafting/printing. You can see some of my projects in Projects.
CMS gave me much experience with video editing, graphic design, and 3D drafting/printing. You can see some of my projects in Projects.
Philosophies
Quality
In this day and age, a lot of philosophies have spread in the business world. They have lead some companies to provide incredible products, and they have lead many to create half-baked ones. It seems, then, that philosophy might be directly related to performance in the business world. If you want a successful company that makes money, don't focus on the money. You need people to buy your products, and for that you need a great product to sell -- something that will produce the highest customer satisfaction ratings. The way to do this is to make a product that is genuinely better than those of the competition. To do this correctly requires a genuine focus on making everything you do as great as possible. It's a tiring process, but be assured that "impossible" is a very deceiving word.
In this day and age, a lot of philosophies have spread in the business world. They have lead some companies to provide incredible products, and they have lead many to create half-baked ones. It seems, then, that philosophy might be directly related to performance in the business world. If you want a successful company that makes money, don't focus on the money. You need people to buy your products, and for that you need a great product to sell -- something that will produce the highest customer satisfaction ratings. The way to do this is to make a product that is genuinely better than those of the competition. To do this correctly requires a genuine focus on making everything you do as great as possible. It's a tiring process, but be assured that "impossible" is a very deceiving word.
"Better a little which is well done, than a great deal imperfectly.”
- PLATO
Simplicity
When the average consumer goes to use a product, whether it be hardware or software, they expect it to start working right away. They don't want to worry with setup instructions or a long account-creation process: The product should just work — and in a way in which everything is instinctive. Some companies are designing for professionals, but there are far too many companies designing for the average consumer that don't consider simplicity.
When the average consumer goes to use a product, whether it be hardware or software, they expect it to start working right away. They don't want to worry with setup instructions or a long account-creation process: The product should just work — and in a way in which everything is instinctive. Some companies are designing for professionals, but there are far too many companies designing for the average consumer that don't consider simplicity.
"That's been one of my mantras — focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”
- STEVE JOBS
Character
Too many people are completely focused on themselves. There is little sense of honesty or professionalism or genuine care when it comes to businesses. It seems, though, that those with character are also those with success. Business and morals can and must coexist.
Too many people are completely focused on themselves. There is little sense of honesty or professionalism or genuine care when it comes to businesses. It seems, though, that those with character are also those with success. Business and morals can and must coexist.
"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.”