This Alumni Spotlight features Adria Shines. We invited Adria to our program after working with her at a Wayne State University Hack-a-thon. She came to our program with interests in STEM and as an enthusiastic learner. Since we began working with Adria, she has grown to become a Computer Science College Student and young professional.
“I met Adria Shines at a Wayne State Hack-a-thon where I volunteered as a coach a couple years ago. She was looking for a team to join and the team that I was mentoring welcomed her. She shared that she wanted to go into STEM/engineering and was interested in computer science. She ended up becoming a vital piece of the team- which won the award for their age group. I was very impressed with Adria in what she added to the team and immediately thought that she would be an awesome addition to our summer program. ”
The JOURNi program has had a lasting impact on my academic and career success. In my freshman year of highschool I joined the Morehouse STEM club to learn more about STEM. The club hosted a contest to design an invention to help society. I designed a personal cooling device for people suffering from temperature regulation medical issues. Much to my surprise, I won first place in the contest! Taking notice of this and my interest in STEM, my vice principal informed me of a Hack-a-thon at Wayne State that weekend. I went to the event and was by chance greeted by 2 boys who both kindly invited me to be on their Hack-a-thon team. When I came to help them with their project, I met their group sponsor Richard Grundy. Richard told me more about his program called JOURNi and asked if I would be interested. The program seemed really exciting and I applied. As for the Hack-a-thon, highschool and college students competed for 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes. My team worked on a new computer program for a virtual assistant, and won 3rd place in the Hack-a-thon.
That summer I worked at JOURNi, and learned so much about computers and coding. I learned how to make websites using the coding languages Python, CSS, HTML, and some Bootstrap. After the summer program ended, I continued to work at JOURNi during the school year learning about the business side of computer science.
Later, I applied for a summer internship at University of Michigan, through a college preparatory program. Since I enjoyed my time at JOURNi so much, I wanted to work a computer science job that summer. When I got the internship, my manager said one of the main things that stood out during my interview, was the skills I had learned at JOURNi. That internship taught me valuable skills that I take with me today.
In my senior year, I applied for many colleges. Richard Grundy was extremely helpful to me not only throughout my college application process, but throughout my high school experience. I could always depend on him to take the time to write a job or academic recommendation letter that highlighted my strengths and presented my areas of growth potential.
In my senior year, I was accepted into college where I now pursue a bachelors in Computer Science. The skills I learned at JOURNi continue to help me even now. Because of JOURNi, I have already worked with the coding languages that are being taught in class. I feel more prepared and earn better grades because I got real-world, practical experience while at JOURNi.
The experience I had at JOURNi was pivotal in deciding to pursue computer science in college and I am very grateful for that opportunity.
-Adria Shines