Elizabeth Smith (she/her)

Elizabeth Smith (she/her) is a graduate student in Computer Science at the University of Oxford. Hailing from Washington, she moved to California in 2014 to attend Santa Clara University and intern as a software engineer at Facebook, Google, and CrowdStrike. Elizabeth enjoys playing the harp, snuggling with yellow labs, drinking coffee, and going on meditation runs.

Women of Silicon Valley provides her with a support network as she continues to heal from her own experiences of sexual harassment and workplace discrimination. Through her role, Elizabeth looks forward to giving back to this community and empowering other women facing similar challenges.

1/ When did you know that you wanted to work in tech?

I was never much of a tech “enthusiast” as a kid, except for the occasional game of Freddi Fish or Zoo Tycoon (90s kids know that these games were, for lack of a better word, lit). The first time I was introduced to a computer program was in my senior year of high school, when I haphazardly registered for AP Computer Science. I remember walking into the first class, quite apprehensive, because my only image of a computer scientist was an awkward white man with a neckbeard who played video games in his free time and had been coding since he could walk … and I most definitely didn’t fit that description!

My teacher, Mr. Procopio, however, quelled my fears. Just like me, he didn’t fit my image of a coder. He, too, had discovered the subject later in life and this gave him the unique ability to teach with immense patience and explore non-conventional ways of explaining concepts. On top of preparing us for the AP exam, he was also an exceptional mentor, inviting guest speakers to the classroom and taking us on fieldtrips. Through this, I was able to see a more “human” side of computers — a side that has been influential in sustaining my passion for tech, especially during long nights of debugging, or frustrating interactions with classmates and coworkers.

2/ Who is a role model that you look up to?

My big sister, Christina! She is currently pursuing a PhD in Medieval Archeology, specializing in Insular (Scottish and English) high crosses. For me, Christina is a model of unquenchable passion and discipline. She is not afraid of going against the status quo and getting her hands dirty (literally), which is something I really struggle with at times. In recent years, she’s endured a lot of voices telling her she needs to do things a specific way (choose a certain school, research a certain topic, etc.) but she has remained steadfast to her goals.

Although I’ve worked as a software developer for four summers now, coding is not something that brings me a lot of joy. My sister’s resilient love and tenacity towards archeology has encouraged me to not settle for something just because it is convenient. In recent months, I’ve been exploring other roles in tech like product management and sales engineering. I know I will be my happiest and contribute most authentically and fully when I have the courage to step out of my comfort zone and seek something that truly excites me.

3/ Where is your hometown?

Seattle, Washington. Yes, I love the rain. Yes, I am a discerning coffee drinker. Yes, I wear flannel. Go Seahawks.

4/ What is a struggle that you’ve faced and how did you handle it?

Enrolling in an MBA program at age 23.

This past September, I graduated with a Master’s (MSc) in Computer Science. A couple weeks later, I began my MBA. To be honest, I expected my transition to the MBA program to be much easier. In fact, I’m nearly three months in and still don’t feel adjusted or particularly excited by my coursework.

During my MSc, I had to deal with moving to a different continent and studying at a new school (University of Oxford) at the graduate level, yet I found that transition to be a lot easier than this year’s. For one, the subject was familiar to me, as I had studied Computer Science/Physics/EE extensively in undergrad; the MSc in Computer Science was a natural academic progression for me.

The MBA is an entirely different experience. Before September, I knew *nothing* about business. I couldn’t even explain the difference between revenue and profit! The average age of my peers in the cohort is 28, which means that even those who didn’t enter with a business degree were at least familiar with the lingo from years of work.

I’ve spent hours reading case studies riddled with terminology and references that are foreign to me yet “common knowledge” in the business world. I’ve chatted at networking events with McKinsey employees, and still had no clue what they actually do. I’ve worked through Wall Street Prep Excel tutorials, but am still not able to model a simple linear regression.

I’ve felt this discouragement and imposter syndrome make me question if I’ll be successful in a job post-graduation. I realize it’s an unhealthy mindset, so I’m trying to be more aware of when I enter the downward spiral. It’s really tough, but it’s getting easier with practice. I might not reach concepts as quickly as my peers, but the important thing is that I keep pushing myself and don’t belittle my successes by measuring them against those of my peers.

5/ What is something that you are immensely proud of?

I am proud of my Swedish heritage. It’s given me my blonde hair and blue eyes, love of the outdoors (particularly winter-related sports), baking, and fika (Swedish coffee hour, a custom I practice daily). Ever since I was very little, my mom has prioritized traditions, many of which are Swedish. One particular holiday I look forward to celebrating every December 13 is St. Lucia Day. Even though I am rarely home these days, I always make time to celebrate it myself.

6/ What’s something that’s been on your mind a lot lately?

Practicing mindfulness! A year ago, I was introduced to the meditation app Headspace. Initially I could barely sit through a 5-minute session, and now I meditate for up to an hour a day. I’ve even integrated the practice into activities like running and eating! Meditation has helped me to become more mindful to the present moment and attentive to the people and things going on around me. Through it, I’ve developed greater self-awareness and self-care, which I believe has helped me to more effectively and genuinely care for others.

7/ Favorite food?

Do rye Manhattans count? ☺ If not, then joulutorttu, a Finnish pastry made with dried plums and dusted with (ideally lots of) powdered sugar.

8/ Favorite book?

I have two:

1. L’Étranger (The Stranger) by Albert Camus. I can’t deny that part of my attachment comes from initially reading it in the native French, an impressive feat considering I was a struggling French minor at the time! That aside, Camus provides the reader with a unique perspective on life, through the eyes of an “outsider” in society. Growing up in a very close-knit family and having attended all private Christian schools, I can struggle with being a bit judgmental due to my limited life experiences. The main character, Meursault, kills an Arab and faces execution, and although I cannot understand his motives, Camus’ style leads me to reach an eventual appreciation for Meursault. I do not consider myself an existentialist or remotely support Meursault’s actions, but I value his authenticity and desire to not conform to societal expectations. It’s an unconventional, absurd bildungsroman (don’t mistake me for being a literary fiend … I just remember a few terms from high school English!!) that does an excellent job of highlighting the consequences of conformity and self-awareness.

2. Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur. Her writing is raw, emotive, and passionate, and for me, serves as a voice for women who have suffered silently through abuse. This collection of poems has helped me to articulate and bring to the surface many of the painful memories I blocked out for years. Suppressing thoughts and feelings only generates tension why is why these poems have been instrumental in creating closure and healing in my life.

9/ If you could try another job for a day, what would it be?

Pastry chef.

10/ If you could give your 18-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent” — Eleanor Roosevelt

During my first internship after freshman year of college, I had an evaluation with a senior software engineer who told me that I “sucked at coding.” I remember returning home from work that evening, devastated, and bursting into tears on the phone with my mom. To comfort me, she shared the above quote. Another time during my freshman year, one of my professors politely suggested I drop my Computer Science major and switch to Mathematics. Again, I took those words as the absolute truth and began to believe that I was not destined to study and work in software. After being assaulted, I let any remaining self-respect inside me die. For a while, I lived defined by the painful actions of another and suffered from much undue shame.

Certain mindsets take a lot of work to undo, and even long before 18, I struggled with being easily swayed by what other did and said to me. I would ruminate over every single interaction I’d have and easily lost sight of myself. Tech is an industry where you have to be very grounded and self-aware because there are a lot of times you can be swayed to do something. Being a female in tech introduces added pressure because you are considered somewhat of a “commodity.” I’ve had multiple occasions where I’ve felt like the only way to progress or be accepted by a team is by conforming to it — and when the majority of teams are male, this is a very fatiguing and unhappy way to live. I’ve often let the words of others determine my value to a team and this has led me to underestimate my abilities and proceed in a state of limitation due to Imposter Syndrome. That’s why WoSV has been such a critical community for me. Reading the stories of other women has helped me to recognize and fight these feelings of inadequacy, incompetence, and lack of belonging.

Marianne Abreu (she/her)

Marianne Abreu (she/her) is a UX designer at YouTube/Google. She has 15 years of experience working at startups, agencies and fortune 500 companies as a design lead. Prior to her current role, she was a product designer at Samsung. Her work has influenced multiple generations of Samsung TVs, smart displays, smart home products, and smartphones.

Outside of work, she has been involved in art projects and exhibitions from painting to interactive installations. She earned a Master’s Degree in Design Strategy and Management from Parsons School of Design and a Bachelor Degree in Industrial Design from the University of Brasilia.

1. When did you know that you wanted to work in tech?

As a child, I was fascinated by computer graphics. I remember being mesmerized by screensavers. At the age of 11, I learned about design as a profession in a magazine and two years later, I found myself building websites. I almost feel as if I was born for this job. My dad had an influence on this as well, I remember him telling me that computers were the future. He was right. I jumped into the tech industry and let it take me to new lands, including moving to Silicon Valley in 2012.

2. Who is a role model that you look up to?

So many people have influenced me throughout my life! If had to choose one person who affected my career the most, that would definitely be my dad. He taught me how to use computers and how to code when I was still a little girl. He encouraged me to explore and to not be afraid to try. I owe him so much for teaching me those early lessons.

3. Where is your hometown?

I grew up in Brasilia, Brazil and later moved to Rio. Now I have been living in San Francisco for 5 years.

4. What is a struggle that you’ve faced and how did you handle it?

What’s life without struggle? The first truth of Buddhism is: life is suffering. I can’t challenge Buddha on this one. Struggles have appeared in my life several times. I have had to learn to be feisty and resilient to continue on the journey. I have encountered struggles in almost every mile: as a woman in tech facing sexism, learning a new language and culture, facing discrimination as a person of color. I see myself as a warrior that fights no matter how blunt the sword is. My self-confidence has been challenged every time people discouraged me, “I don’t think you would be able to do this” or “You are not ready for that” or “This is too complex/difficult for you.” I’m so glad that I never let them stop me.

5. What is something that you are immensely proud of?

“Inspire to be inspired” is my motto. One of the things that inspire me the most are TED Talks. I can spend hours watching them. It is such an inspiration boost. In 2009, I was fortunate enough to meet a group of people that were as passionate about them as I was, and together we worked hard to bring TED to Brazil. In 2010, we organized the first TEDx in Rio. It was huge! We managed to get sponsorship, which allowed us to bring in some brilliant minds. The event was entirely free and livestreamed. We later brought that experience to the favelas in Rio. I was astonished. Bringing inspiration and education to my community made me feel immensely proud.

6. What’s something that’s been on your mind a lot lately?

I have been thinking a lot about how much we can bring our whole selves to work.

7. Favorite food?

Brazilian cheese bread and Açai bowl!

8. Favorite book?

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari. Completely mind-blowing.

9. If you could try another job for a day, what would it be?

I would like to be a Yoga teacher for a day. Maybe I will do that one day.

10. If you could give your 18-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

“Focus on systems, not goals.”

Kendrick Umstattd (she/her)

Kendrick Umstattd (she/her) is a software engineering intern at Google, working on the Google Earth Engine team in Mountain View, CA. She is excited to be back for her second summer at Google, following an Engineering Practicum Internship in Kirkland, Washington, on the CloudML EngProd team. She joined Women of Silicon Valley this summer to help produce the summer intern series.

This fall, Kendrick will be starting her senior year at Yale University as an Electrical Engineering and Computer Science major. When Kendrick is not busy writing code in TypeScript or Python, she can be found travelling to San Francisco and Paris; searching for a new favorite book or podcast to enjoy; and getting involved in initiatives aimed at empowering more young women to pursue STEM.

1. When did you know that you wanted to work in tech?

It wasn’t until high school that I was introduced to computer science and engineering. My math teacher, Ms. Kezmarsky, took the female students in her Calculus class to Lockheed Martin for a Women in STEM day. It was there that I first saw how powerful these fields are, and I was particularly intrigued by the computer science work being done.

Shortly after, I completed a summer program in computer science, and I loved that the work was like solving puzzles. There would be times when an idea for a solution would come to me at a random moment in the day, so I would run to jot down a few notes to implement later in code. A number of years later, I still feel this same excitement, whether I am collaborating with team members at Google; working with the Yale Social Robotics Lab to provide socially-assistive robots to children with autism; or building and maintaining Yale’s college websites.

2. Who is a role model that you look up to?

I have always looked up to my mother. To begin with, she has built an incredible career. After graduating from Yale University with a B.A. in Russian and East European Studies, and receiving her J.D. from Yale Law School, she worked for the U.S. Naval Reserve and the Central Intelligence Agency. After moving to Leesburg, Virginia, in 1987, where she and my father began practicing law together, she served on the Leesburg Town Council from 1992 to 2002.

During the majority of my upbringing, from 2002 to 2016, my mother served as Mayor of the Town of Leesburg. I watched her in this role with such admiration, because every decision she makes is driven by a powerful desire to improve people’s lives. She has always listened to her constituents, working closely with them to ensure that they feel heard, and that they are able to see actions being taken to help them. She now serves as Leesburg District Supervisor on the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors where she brings that same dedication, and she continues to be my ultimate role model.

3. Where is your hometown?

Leesburg, Virginia.

4. What is a struggle that you’ve faced and how did you handle it?

In both my personal and professional life, I like to approach any new situation with a well-researched plan. Before travelling to Paris, I read about everything from how to navigate the public transportation networks to where to enjoy the best views (Les Ombres, if you’re wondering); before my internships, I made sure to be fluent in the relevant programming languages, namely Java, Python, and TypeScript. What I’ve realized in the past year, however, is that although a plan is fantastic to have, there are many variables involved in any endeavor that can quickly make a plan outdated. When this happens, it is essential to be prepared to think on your feet and adapt. Getting comfortable with this idea has taken some time, but I enjoy seeing how I can respond to the unexpected without extensive time to prepare.

5. What is something that you are immensely proud of?

After my senior year of high school and freshman year of college, I interned at the North American headquarters of the behavioral research company Noldus Information Technology. One of my projects involved developing an integrated solution between Noldus’ software and Tobii eyetracking systems. There wasn’t any existing documentation about this particular assignment, so I was tasked with discovering on my own how to achieve this goal. As I went, I documented each step, so, at the end of the project, not only did I have a workable solution, but I had a guide that my colleagues could use after my internship ended. I was proud of what I had been able to achieve with the support of my colleagues, but I was even more satisfied with the fact that I was leaving behind a manual that could serve as a resource for the interns and full-time employees to come after me.

6. What’s something that’s been on your mind a lot lately?

During this year’s GoogleServe, Google’s month of service in June, I volunteered with Girl STEM Stars for a day spent teaching young girls about computer science and robotics. Over the course of the day, we watched as the students came into their own, becoming more willing to code different solutions that might or might not work. This event reminded me why I am so glad that organizations like Girl STEM Stars, Made with Code, Girls Who Code, and Kode with Klossy exist, because these groups — and many others — are helping show girls and young women that the goal shouldn’t be to be perfect, both in general and in STEM fields. The goal is to try, maybe fail, learn, and keep trying.

7. Favorite food?

Bison steak at the National Museum of the American Indian. I was last there with my mom after we participated in the D.C. March for Our Lives.

8. Favorite book?

If I were to create a “starter pack” of books for young women, Sheryl Sandberg’s books would be at the top of the stack. “Lean In” has received a lot of well-deserved attention, but her second book “Option B” deserves a mention, too. There are many great pointers about how to handle a situation where things don’t go as planned for you or someone you care about.

9. If you could try another job for a day, what would it be?

I have such a love for writing code and building new technologies. There is something so satisfying about working on a dedicated team, bouncing ideas off of each other, and then sitting down and implementing what you have discussed in Python or TypeScript. If I had to choose a different job for a day, I would want to be sure that I was still just as close to the technology, but it could be fun to look at it from the other side as a tech reporter. In my free time, I read and listen to reporting done by Kara Swisher of “Recode Decode” and Lauren Goode and Arielle Pardes of “Wired”. Teaming up with any of them, and analyzing technology from a different perspective, would be a great experience.

10. If you could give your 18-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

Think about your goals with a “launch and iterate” mindset. Having goals allows you to build a plan and make an educated decision about what your next steps should be. This is the “launch” part. Iterating, which is equally important, comes into play when reality opens your eyes to an opportunity or priority shift you couldn’t have foreseen. Your goals are not written in stone. Seize these moments of realizations as opportunities to update your goals to match your new understanding of yourself and the world.

Jess Candido Webb (she/her)

Jess Webb (she/her) is an Executive Summit Manager at Google. She has over seven years of experience in the event planning arena and coordinates content and logistics for an average of 200 events per year.

Born and raised in Brazil, Jess is a first-generation college student and proud member of the LGBT* community.

Event planning is Jess’s way to create opportunities for people from traditionally underrepresented communities to have the platform and safe environment to share ideas, create strong networks, and execute progressive change.

Jess spends her time outside of work playing competitive European Team Handball, hanging out with her friends, doing outdoor activities with her beagle Dash, and traveling.

1. When did you know that you wanted to work in tech?

Growing up in a small countryside town of Brazil, I always felt that the environmental field was my true calling. After graduating from the top university in South America, UNICAMP, with a BS in Environmental Control Technology, I knew I had to learn English to have a chance at building a solid and successful career.

Coming from a humble low-income family, the only way that I was able to pursue my dream of English immersion in the USA was through an interexchange program. I shared this dream with my mom, and although surprised, she was very supportive. My mom saved everything she could, and that combined with the little money that I was able to save through working in the University labs, I was able to pay and apply for an Au Pair program.

This program consisted of taking care of host families’ children while going to school, learning English, traveling, and experiencing American culture. After spending 2 years in the program, I started to look for a job in the Environmental Field. I applied for over 30 positions and received zero offers. Literally zero. In order to pay my bills, I started working as a nanny, organizer, personal assistant, you name it. I was working up to 3 jobs at the same time.

One day, I was lucky to be introduced to Judy Crawford, the Founder of a Marketing, Events & Communications company that was based in Cupertino. Since my English was not yet at a professional level, Judy made a huge investment in me by hiring me onto her team. That is where my journey in tech began.

I worked for the Crawford Group for nearly 4 years. I wore just about every hat in the company, which provided me with an opportunity to diversify my skill set. I was able to learn from the most amazing people in the events and marketing field. I also gained exposure to larger companies like Cisco, Adobe, and several others. All the early morning and late night hours of hard work at Crawford paid off greatly. With a strong foundation, I was able to land a 1 year contract dream position at Google, which eventually became a full-time offer.

2. Who is a role model that you look up to?

I have been struggling a lot to reply this question because I simply can’t follow the directions to name just one. It wouldn’t be fair.

My mom Gislaine was a young single mother. By the time she was 25, she had two little girls to take care of and to provide for. She abdicated the right to watch her two little girls grow up in order to financially support us the best she could. She lived and worked in the city and would travel on weekends to my hometown to spend the little free time she had with me and my sister. For years we would only see her a few weekends each month.

My mom was working so hard, with no support whatsoever from my dad, who abandoned my family when I was 3 years old. My grandparents took the role of caregivers. My late grandpa Vicente would walk my sister and I to school every day. He taught us how to pursue joy in life. It was from him that I learned to bike, use the swing set, jump rope, do handstands, etc. He transferred to me his passion for sports and outdoor activities and as my grandma would always say: “he is just a big kid”.

My grandma Doris was the heart of house, preparing every meal every single day from scratch; as she still does at the age of 91. She taught us how to take care of ourselves, clean, cook, wash clothes, lookout for each other and our cousins. Her unconditional love for us and for the entire family is something that I believe I will only truly understand when I have a family of my own.

My mission in life is to make my mom and my grandparents proud, and to make my life worthy of their sacrifices.

3. Where is your hometown?

São João da Boa Vista, São Paulo, Brazil. My hometown is located 3.5 hours from São Paulo city.

4. What is a struggle that you’ve faced and how did you handle it?

I grew up in Brazil, which is still a very sexist, conservative and extremely homophobic country. Being straight was the only acceptable option. I was raised in an ordinary Italian/Catholic family, where subjects like sex and sexuality were taboo and not open for discussion. End of story.

Growing up in an environment where being gay is not an option, I simply ignored the subject and moved on with my life. Even though I was surrounded by a few lesbians who played on my hometown handball team, I always dated boys. It never occurred to me that I may feel the same way they did because I simply couldn’t relate to their physical expression.

The LGBTQ+ community has always been an extremely marginalized group in my town. The label of a lesbian has a stereotypical connotation that you are more masculine in the way you look and behave. That just was not me. I dressed in shorts, t-shirts, and had my hair in a ponytail often, but I also loved to put high heels, a dress, and makeup on; so how could I be gay?

You might be asking yourself, “but Jess, how about the college experience?”. Forget about it! There was no college experience. My friend circles were always straight. After moving to the USA, it was more of the same. Marrying a man was the most natural thing to do, right?

So I did get married and at that time in my life, I could not have chosen a better person or family. They took me in as one of their own and they supported me in everything I pursued. Life was good. Years passed and I had a sense that something was still missing but I didn’t know what it was.

On my 30th birthday, my best friends and ex-husband took me to Vegas to celebrate. After a long night in a club, I danced with a girl. I was very shy and towards the end the girl grabbed my face and kissed me. After that, I realized what was missing and I fought like hell against it. I couldn’t be gay. I didn’t want to be gay. I had something good going for me.

Reality is, there are some things about who we are that we cannot choose. After months of struggling, I was finally brave enough to come out to my ex-husband. He supported me in a way that I never expected. He helped me through the coming out process, wiping many tears off of my face, and assuring me that we would be fine and that I was going to be fine.

I will always be grateful to him and his family for their support and love in the most difficult time of my life. The process was not easy, but I am who I am and I love who I am. My friends and colleagues were also there for me. They showed me more love and respect than someone could ask for in a lifetime. My family came around after some time and realized that at the end of the day, I am now just a more authentic version of myself.

5. What is something that you are immensely proud of?

There are two distinct times in my life that I remember being proud of my own accomplishments.

The first time was when I was accepted into university. The school system in Brazil is very different than in the USA. In Brazil, the public universities are the best options and regardless of how well you did in high school, every single student has to pay and go through a series of week long tests. It is almost impossible to get in if you didn’t study your entire life in private middle and high schools. I was fortunate to be involved and skilled in sports. Although I was able to land a scholarship to play handball in one of the best academic high schools in town, that was not enough.

After high school, I tried to get into the university and I did not pass. So I took a year off of handball and studied every day for hours. After going through all the tests, you wait. The results go out on the internet or the state newspaper. I didn’t have a computer with internet at my house, so my mom who was working in a different town was supposed to call me to let me know if I had passed or not. When the phone rang I told my sister to pick up and she said: “Stop, just pick it up and deal with whatever results you got”. So, I did.

On the other side, in between tears I heard my mom saying: “You made it, you made it”. I was not capable of saying anything. I just started to cry. My sister hugged me and cried with me. I could hear my mom crying on the other end of the line and her colleagues congratulating her. It was one of the happiest days of my life.

The second time I felt really proud of myself was definitely when I got the contract position at Google. It was my third time interviewing with Google. At that point, getting denied twice before, my prospects were not good, but as they say, the third time’s a charm! When I got the email from the recruiter offering me the position, what I experienced was pure joy and happiness. I had a certainty that once again all my hard work was being rewarded and I was in fact living a life worthy of my family’s sacrifices.

6. What’s something that’s been on your mind a lot lately?

I commute 2.5 hours to work each day. This is negatively impacting my quality of life. I am moving closer to work in the next few weeks and looking forward to using the extra time to do more of the things I love.

7. Favorite food?

It changes, but currently ramen and always açaí bowls (not like the new kind available at Costco, as it does not taste the same as the ones in Brazil).

8. Mac or PC?

Mac for sure

9. If you could try another job for a day, what would it be?

Professional athlete. Everybody around me knows about my love for sports and mainly European Team Handball, so perhaps if I was at least 5’10” I would have invested more in this other dream.

10. If you could give your 18-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

I would tell her that it is ok to make mistakes. You don’t have to try to please everyone all the time and that it is ok if things are not clean and organized at all times (that’s something I still try to tell myself every day).

I would tell her to be more brave, to not waste time with broken relationships and friendships. I was told to surround myself with people who will help me be more successful; those with wealth and status. But I would tell my 18 year old self to surround herself with people with a good heart, and that would be enough.

I would tell her to trust more in the people who love her. Trust that they will love her regardless of her choices, regardless of her sexuality, and regardless of her career.

Finally, to always believe in herself, be positive and know that with hard work and determination she can accomplish things that she never dreamed of.

Jourdan Dorrell (she/her)

Jourdan Dorrell (she/her) is a Diversity Channels Specialist at Google and Social Media Manager at Women of Silicon Valley. She works with Black and Latinx students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) and Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) to support and guide them through the Software Engineering Internship Application process.

Prior to Google, Jourdan studied Sociology at Northwestern University and dedicated her time to social justice and civic engagement. As a first generation, low-income college student, she cares deeply about diversifying the Tech Industry and maximizing opportunities for people of color.

1. When did you know that you wanted to work in tech?

Ironically, I never saw myself working in tech. As a sociology major, I spent most of my undergraduate career working on community organizing and advocacy. When an internship opportunity at Google came up, it was actually a much more a financially motivated decision for me to accept. I struggled to feel at peace at Google and in the tech and corporate world until my intern manager, Lizi Lopez, helped me find communities and projects that cared about, which worked towards Diversity and Inclusion (D&I). She helped me understand that I didn’t have sacrifice my passion for D&I to work in tech and didn’t have to leave tech to make an impact in an area that I really care about.

2. Who is a role model that you look up to?

My father. He wasn’t perfect by any means, but he really cared about other people. He opened our house to all, and gave all of himself to other and to us, his family. He was strong even in times of weakness, and loved me for me. He was my biggest cheerleader and advocate. He would brag about his daughters to anyone who would listen, and I remember always being so embarrassed, but looking back I’m was so lucky to have a dad like him. I received a full tuition scholarship to Northwestern, and it all started because he brought me up to a random woman at a Firestone Tire Store who ended up nominating me for the Posse Scholarship. When I got the call that I would be going to college, the first thing I did was call him. I told him the good news and then asked, “why don’t you sound more excited?” He responded, “I never had any doubts in my mind that you would get it.”

3. Where is your hometown?

Southern California. (I’ve moved a lot.)

4. What is a struggle that you’ve faced and how did you handle it?

The toughest struggle I’ve ever overcome was depression. My father passed away from cancer during the first week of my freshman year of college. I was supposed to be this bright eyed, bushy tailed college student with the rest of my life in front of me, but I had just lost the most important person in my life. Everyone was so excited to start college, and my whole world had just been shattered. I went home for a week before flying back across the country to finish my first quarter.

In my mind, I couldn’t afford to get behind in school and nothing was going to stop that. I spent my entire freshman year ignoring my body and my mind and attempted to ‘catch up’ with the rest of my classmates. I had no time for grief, pain, or sadness, I only had classes to go to and finals to take. It wasn’t until the first anniversary of my dad’s passing that my mental health began to deteriorate quickly. I realized how much life I had lived, and how many new experiences I had made without my father there to share it with. I would describe what the next year felt like, but I don’t remember it. All I remember is a numbness that never seemed to disappear, and being home to an emotionless body.

I eventually went to therapy, at the suggestion of a friend, and slowly started unpacking the trauma that I had endured. I had to let myself feel hurt, let myself grieve, and let myself experience sadness and mourn. I had spent so much time trying to be strong that I hadn’t realize that being vulnerable and open was what I really needed to clear the fog.

5. What is something that you are immensely proud of?

While cliche, I am most proud of graduating from college. The day before Commencement, my college had a Black Student Graduation. They had all the first generation students stand up and we received a standing ovation from all the parents in the room and I cried. I could write a book about how many times I thought I would fail, times I actually failed, and how many nights I spent away fearful of what my future looked like, but I persevered. I have never worked so hard or been tried so hard as I had over the four year I spent in college. It was in that moment that I felt the gravity of what I had accomplished, in a room surrounded by my community.

6. What’s something that’s been on your mind a lot lately?

As a new college grad experiencing a lot of change in the past year, I want to make sure that I am being intentional with my time and energy. In college, I would easily get wrapped up in situations, that in the grand scheme of things, just didn’t matter. I now try to reflect on my own experiences and actions, the impact that they have on other people, and the impact that others have on me and how I choose to react. I want to intentionally express gratitude to the people in my life who have positively shaped who I am and practice honesty, accountability, and responsibility. I want to be a positive force in other’s lives and create a community of support.

7. Favorite food?

I love Chipotle. Extra White Rice, no beans, Carnitas, pico, corn salsa, sour cream, cheese, lettuce, and guac, with a tortilla on the side.

8. Favorite book?

Looking for Alaska by John Green.

9. If you could try another job for a day, what would it be?

I would love to be a wedding photographer. I love taking photographs of people. There is so much joy, beauty, and happiness that can be captured in a single photo. With weddings, there is so much love and emotion from the bride to the groom, to the family and friends that are there to celebrate with them. I would be honored to be entrusted to save these memories for a new couple, as they start their family.

10. If you could give your 18-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

Take care of yourself first and foremost. Express gratitude every opportunity you can. Surround yourself with people that make you the best version of yourself, make you feel beautiful, and make you feel at home. Hold yourself responsible for the impact that you have on others.

Stephany Yong (she/her)

Stephany Yong (she/her) is a Product Manager at Glossier, formerly at Facebook, and Head of Marketing at Women of Silicon Valley. Prior to Facebook, she worked at Instagram, YouTube, and Box. The proud daughter of two immigrant engineers, she cares deeply about creating equal access to educational resources especially in STEM and celebrating the stories of strong, inspiring women.

After graduating from college in 2016, Stephany moved to San Francisco, where she spends her free time exploring the city’s food scene, hiking around the Bay Area, and rooting for her hometown LA Lakers.

1. When did you know that you wanted to work in tech?

Going into college, I didn’t have much prior exposure to Silicon Valley and the tech industry. I actually spent most of my free time in high school writing for the school yearbook and wanted to pursue a career in journalism.

During freshman orientation at Stanford, there were dinnertime conversations where kids were casually talked about their startup ideas or which systems engineering class they were taking. I was intimidated by those discussions and wasn’t sure if there was a place for someone like me in tech.

Nevertheless, I still wanted to learn more about the startup scene, so I got an internship at a startup called Pixlee, which at the time was based out of the Stanford startup accelerator. After class, I would take a bus to their office, where I worked on marketing and copywriting. After a quarter of interning there, I was absolutely enamored. I got to work with some of the most intelligent, humble, and scrappy people I had ever met, and had a front-row seat to a founding team finding product-market fit and raising their seed round.

Through that experience, I began to draw parallels between the product development cycle — of deeply understanding a people problem and building a solution — with what I loved most about journalism, which was getting to the core of what people care about and creating a compelling story around it. From there, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in tech.

2. Who is a role model that you look up to?

My mom. When she was 17, she moved from Shanghai to West Virginia by herself to live with her uncle and went on to study Electrical Engineering in college. She shared her love of math with me, stressed the importance of doing things in a principled manner (i.e. show your work), and taught me that although you can’t control the hand you were dealt, you can move forward and build what you can with what you have.

My mom is a wonderful role model of a woman that can hack, sew, build, and run anything she wants to, whether it was maintaining our household, fixing up one of the apartments she manages with my dad, rewiring the piping in my bathroom, or helping me construct a trebuchet for my high school physics class. She embodies what a female engineer is in my eyes — determined, resilient, and a humble problem solver.

3. Where is your hometown?

Chino Hills, CA.

4. What is a challenge that you’ve faced and how did you handle it?

In navigating my career, I’ve encountered imposter syndrome at almost every turn — whether it was when I decided to switch my major to computer science late into college (facing the internal dialogue of — wait, programming doesn’t come naturally to me), or when I was applying to PM jobs (wait, I don’t have any formal software engineering experience), or when I started out as a full-time PM at Facebook after college (wait, I feel severely under-qualified to lead this very talented team).

I’m still very much a work in progress on this front, but I’ve been lucky to have amazing mentors and managers who have seen the best in me even when it was not entirely clear to me if I was good enough — they’ve pushed me to speak up more, go for promotions, and take on increased scope.

5. What is something that you are proud of?

I was working at Box the summer before my junior year in product marketing. I loved the people and the company, but I wanted a role that centered more on building products. I had lunch with a senior female product manager (PM) at the company, and she told me that in order to break into product management, I would need to have a strong technical background in computer science. Although I’ve since learned that great PMs come from various backgrounds (including non-technical), at the time I took this advice at face value.

For someone who likes to plan out everything, switching majors halfway into college into an engineering discipline was severely out of my comfort zone. Although I enjoyed the handful of computer science classes I had taken to get my feet wet, coding didn’t come naturally to me. It took a lot of work for me to overcome that fear of failure, but once I set my sights out on pursuing a career in product, I went all in.

For two years, I played catch up and took extra classes, which led to long hours in the library and at office hours. But looking back, it was well worth it — in the process, I ended up taking some of my favorite classes at Stanford in human-centered design that reaffirmed how I wanted to build consumer-facing products. Later that fall when I passed the technical Google Associate Product Management interview, it affirmed that I had the chops to be a PM at a tech company.

6. What’s something that’s been on your mind a lot lately?

This idea of living life at your own pace. I think there’s this meme around turning 30 (especially for women) that you need to be at a certain place both personally and professionally. And once you pair that with Silicon Valley culture, where you’re constantly bombarded with stories of a founder of X having accomplished Y by the age of Z, that pressure to hit targets by a certain age seem even stronger.

I think it’s important to bring into perspective that our careers span several decades and that it’s ok to make decisions that maximize for long-term growth, as opposed to immediate payouts. It’s something I’m actively working on, but getting rid of superficially imposed timelines seems like a good first step.

7. Favorite food?

Clam chowder. I’ve yet to encounter a clam chowder that I haven’t enjoyed, whether it be in a cup, in bread bowl, or from a can.

8. Mac or PC?

Mac

9. If you could try another job for a day, what would it be?

I’ve gotten into a few lifestyle podcasts lately, so I would try out being a podcaster. The podcast in question would be some cross between Armchair Expert and We Met At Acme.

10. If you could give your 18-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

You’re a lot more resilient and capable than you give yourself credit for. You have as much of a right to be where you are as anyone else; while you should be self-aware of your shortcomings, don’t downplay your strengths. And on a slightly unrelated note, the Lakers are going to suck for the next few years; do not feel obliged to become a bandwagon Warriors fan.

Clarissa Bukhan (she/her)

Clarissa (she/her) is a Strategic Partner Development Manager at Google and Editor-in-Chief at Women of Silicon Valley. Prior to Google, she was an early member of the business development teams at Box and Optimizely. She is passionate about advancing the role of women in technology through education and storytelling. Before Women of Silicon Valley, her work in this field included serving as a committee member of the Box Women’s Network and as a mentor to female high school entrepreneurs through BUILD.org.

Outside of work, she can often be found reading, traveling, chasing around her two young kids, or sometimes trying to do all three at once.

1. When did you decide you wanted to be in the tech industry?

After graduating from college, my original intention was to work in journalism. I took a job with a company that produced “advertorial” reports (which are basically sponsored articles) for international newspapers. We got to live in a different country every 4 months, which was a dream, but the way that work got done at that company was very old-school. We faxed contracts back and forth and kept track of calls, contacts, and calendars on paper. A good percentage of our work day was spent managing these administrative tasks.

At the end of my first year there, we found ourselves in the middle of the recession, and the company was struggling. I came back to San Francisco and figured I’d do something short-term until I found a role that I was really passionate about, so I took an entry-level job at a startup. At that company, I was suddenly introduced to a whole new world of technology — CRMs to manage contacts, e-signature tools to manage contract signing, collaborative calendars, and shared drives. I realized how technology had the power to change the way that work gets done. From then on, I was hooked and have worked in tech ever since.

2. Who’s one person in your life you looked up to when you were younger?

My grandmother was a pretty phenomenal person. She grew up in the Philippines and came to the US in the 1950s to pursue her Masters degree in banking at Columbia University in New York. There weren’t many women pursuing advanced degrees in business at the time, and I imagine that there were still far less that were foreign/international students, but she did it.

She ended up meeting my grandfather during her time in New York and went on to raise 10 children. As someone who became a mom for the first time just two years ago, I can’t even fathom the physical and mental toll that carrying, birthing, and raising that many children must have taken on her, but she did it.

She was a wonderful mother and became the matriarch of our huge, crazy family. She passed away a couple of years ago, but every time this whole parenthood thing gets tough (which is often), I find inspiration in thinking of her.

3. Where’s your hometown?

San Francisco, CA.

4. What’s a time you faced a struggle?

One of the most challenging periods I’ve been through recently started in October 2015. My uncle Rocky, the youngest of my mom’s siblings, went in for a fairly standard surgery and unfortunately did not survive. A couple of weeks later, my aunt, uncle, and grandmother (from the same side of the family) were involved in a tragic car accident, which took my grandmother’s life. We lost 2 loved ones, unexpectedly, within a one month period. For a family as close as ours, this was a huge blow.

At the time, I also happened to be pregnant with my first child, working full-time, and attending my first year of business school at UC Berkeley’s evening/weekend program, so there was a lot going on. I was managing feelings of grief, on top of the physical (and emotional) discomforts of pregnancy, while trying to stay afloat at both work and school. As an introvert by nature, I tend to turn inward when I need to process things. I prefer to handle difficult situations on my own, rather than talking it out or asking for help. However, this time I literally could not manage alone.

I found comfort in leaning on my family, who were coping with the same experience of loss, but were still somehow able to bring some levity to those long days spent in ICU waiting rooms. At work, my manager and colleagues were supportive and gave me the flexibility to take as much time off as I needed. At school, my study group stepped up for me and made sure that our work was taken care of in my absence. As someone who doesn’t often ask for help, this experience reminded me of the importance of community, and of giving and accepting help from those around you.

5. What’s a time you did something you were immensely proud of?

I had a proud moment recently, while I was on maternity leave with my son. My husband and I were in the process of buying our first house and were hoping to get a specific type of loan. Ten minutes after filling out the preliminary paperwork, I received a call telling me in a very dismissive tone, “Yeah, that loan isn’t going to be an option for you.”

I was shocked and asked how they had come to that conclusion so quickly. The loan officer told me, “You’re on maternity leave. We can’t qualify you unless you go back to work before closing.” The closing was in 4 weeks and I still had 2 months of leave left with my son. I was floored. It was the first time that I had felt the sting of discrimination for being a parent. It felt wrong, so I instinctively pushed back.

Who were they to assume that I might not come back to work after maternity leave? Why was the fact that I had a baby preventing us from getting a loan that we were fully qualified for financially? Were they saying that if I’d had my son one month earlier, this wouldn’t have been an issue? How was that fair? Was this even legal?

It turns out, it wasn’t. I did some research and found the specific law that protects people from being discriminated against in real estate transactions due to familial status. I shared that with her and told her I wanted to speak with whomever the ultimate decision maker on the matter would be. After much back and forth, things ended up working out in our favor and we qualified for the loan.

I was proud of the fact that I had refused to accept that initial decision, had listened to that gut feeling that told me it was a biased outcome, and had held my ground. It seems like a small win, but honestly, a couple of years ago, I don’t know that I would have had the wherewithal to question a decision that seemed so final.

6. What’s something that’s been on your mind a lot lately?

I recently returned to work after my second maternity leave, and it’s prompted me to think a lot about how to lead a balanced life. There’s a lot of fodder about whether working moms can “have it all,” but I think that’s the wrong question. It’s not about being the ultimate PTA parent while climbing the career ladder to the very top, the real question is — what is the right balance *for me* to feel fulfillment in both my family life and my work life? The answer to that is nuanced and likely different for every working parent. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about what that answer is for myself.

7. Favorite food?

Having grown up in San Francisco, I have to say that Dungeness crab is probably my all-time favorite food.

8. Favorite book?

Reading has long been my favorite hobby, so I have a lot of favorites! I love fiction and find myself particularly drawn to books with offbeat (often “unlikeable”) protagonists, so a few favorites are A Confederacy of Dunces, Ask the Dust, A Prayer for Owen Meany, and Everything is Illuminated.

9. If you could try another job for a day, what would it be?

I’ve always wanted to be a journalist, so I would love to try that out for a day.

10. If you could give your 18-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

You don’t *always* have to make the smart, pragmatic choice. Some of your greatest adventures will come from decisions that you make on impulse, so embrace spontaneity and get comfortable with being uncomfortable.

Raquel Small (she/her)

Raquel Small (she/her) is a Paralegal at Google on the Litigation team and Head of Community for Women of Silicon Valley. She is also a newly minted Master of Communication Management from the University of Southern California.

Originally from the NYC area, she is the child of a proud Jamaican mother and a Panamanian father, and she believes empowering women and people of color is the only way to make society better.

In her very limited free time, she likes to bake, try new restaurants, and exercise because of all the baking and dismantling of the patriarchy. She currently lives in San Francisco with her husband Eric and her cat Foxy Cleopatra.

1. When did you know that you wanted to work in tech?

I have always been interested in technology. When I was in high school I was big in the Live Journal community and taught myself HTML, PaintShop Pro and a bit of CSS so that I could sell journal templates. I spent an inordinate amount of time on the Internet and always assumed that I’d have a job that was related to it. When I got to college, I took some pre-law classes since I was dead-set on becoming a lawyer at the time. One class in particular, Cyberlaw, completely changed my life. The class was all about the law surrounding the Internet and specifically about how far the law lagged behind. After that class, I knew that I wanted to be an intellectual property lawyer specializing in copyright law on the Internet.

2. Who is a role model that you look up to?

My mother is the most amazing woman I know. She came to America from Jamaica at only 12 years old, completely alone, to live with her aunt and uncle. By age 15, she was completely supporting herself and eventually landed a job at the United Nations where she’s been for almost 40 years.

She worked herself to the bone to put me into the best schools and extracurriculars and taught me to work hard and never take anything in this life for granted. Currently, she is working in Sierra Leone for a few months and has spent several months in the Philippines, Georgia, and Zambia helping to build women’s health centers. She is the most fearless woman I know and always taught me that independence is a woman’s greatest asset.

3. Where is your hometown?

I was born in New York City but grew up in a small town right outside of it called Englewood, New Jersey. Sometimes it’s hard for me to admit that I’m a Jersey girl but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned to appreciate it. We have amazing beaches, thousands of malls and the best Taylor Ham, egg and cheeses you’ll ever have. I even got married on the Jersey Shore (not the fist-pumping part).

4. What is a challenge that you’ve faced and how did you handle it?

After studying for the LSATs four times and actually working up the nerve to take the test twice, I applied to law school in 2014. I applied to eight schools, but got rejected from nearly all of my top choices. My whole life, I had been told how smart I was, what a great lawyer I would be, and I truly believed that I had checked all the right boxes and taken all the right steps to achieve that goal. In hindsight, that was an incredible amount of hubris on my part.

Getting rejected from the top schools essentially shattered my dream of being a lawyer, which was something that I’d held on to for over 10 years. I did get into some schools and I could have chosen to go to those, but a small voice inside of me told me “this isn’t right”. I had worked so hard for this moment and I wanted it to be completely perfect. I was unwilling to accept anything less, so I decided to listen to that tiny voice and not go after all. It was immensely scary to give up on something I had put so much of my time and resources into, but I know it was the right move.

At some point, the dream transitioned more into a status symbol than something I actually wanted to do. In my job, I worked with lawyers daily and saw how much they loved their role — which was something that I never felt. In hindsight, I had plenty of signs along the way that law school wasn’t for me, but I chose to ignore them because I thought it was part of my “process”. I struggled for a long time with feeling like I had failed (which was honestly a new sensation for me) but in the end, I know I made the right decision.

5. What is something that you are immensely proud of?

I am immensely proud of receiving my Masters of Communications Management from USC this past May. After the whole law school debacle, I re-grouped and decided to get my Masters in something that felt more familiar to me — Communications. In reflecting on why I chose not to go to law school, I realized that whatever career I chose needed to be something that my personality fit into, not the other way around. While I’m sure I would have been a fine lawyer, I think I would have always felt like a square peg in a round hole.

Getting my Masters while working full-time was one of the most time-consuming, emotional things I’d ever done. Working in litigation, the job is extremely deadline driven and there were times when I would work a 13 hour day only to turn around and have to work on a paper due that night. It pushed me to my mental, emotional, and physical limits at many different points, but somehow, I made it through.

6. What’s something that’s been on your mind a lot lately?

I have been thinking a lot about self-care. It has become such a buzzword lately that it seems like it’s lost a lot of its meaning. I read an article recently that said something to the effect that if you find yourself looking for ways to self-care constantly, maybe it’s time to rethink your life. Self-care is meant to be a momentary relief from a crazy situation, not a way to escape your daily life. I’m trying to look for more ways to have the kind of life that I don’t need self-care from.

7. Favorite food?

Pizza — it’s good even when it’s bad.

8. Favorite book?

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. The protagonist of the story, Francie, always showed such resilience much like the titular tree that grows through concrete. I’ve read it four times and always find some new nuggets of wisdom.

9. If you could try another job for a day, what would it be?

Growing up, my dream was always to be a tornado chaser after I saw the movie Twister. I loved science when I was younger but it fell out of favor for me once I realized how much math was involved. Tornado chasing is incredibly dangerous but there is something about the high-risk, high reward nature of it and being that close to something so deadly that always excited me. I think it’s why I like rollercoasters so much!

10. If you could give your 18-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

Just do it the right way — not the quick way. It’s tempting to want to just get things over with and move on to the next more exciting thing but if I have learned one thing over the years, it’s that the process is the reward. There are so many things that I missed out on because I was just looking to leave the job or hand in the test that I get upset when I think about how I didn’t take advantage of those opportunities to learn and grow. It feels torturous in the moment, but it really does yield better results.