Hometown: Hollywood, FL
Class: 2013
Major: Computer Science, Business
What clubs and organizations are you involved with on campus?
I’m a manager at the LTS help desk, a Web Developer at the Web and Middleware Department, and the Google Student Ambassador. I’m also part of the Brandeis University Swimming and Diving Team (BUSDT).
You’ve been on the swim team since your freshman year. How have the relationships you’ve formed within your team shaped your college experience?
Swimming was really a life-changing experience freshman year. I think it really made my years at Brandeis very unique, and the teammates I had that year are still my greatest friends today. The off-campus practices and the team’s suspension looming over us all season really made it a really rough first season, but we still had a great attitude and pulled through. The work ethic that you have to have as a college swimmer really set the bar for how my work ethic had to be for the rest of my time at Brandeis. It’s been tough to get back into it after 2 years of not swimming*, but, we are getting a chance to finish what we started and I am really happy to have our team back. My only hopes are to give this year’s freshmen the same experience that I had on the team my freshman year, as us seniors are the only remains from that old team.
How did you become a Google Ambassador? What are some of the challenges that come with this role?
I was invited to apply for the Google Student Ambassador at the end of my internship at Google this summer. I thought that it’d be a fun opportunity, and so far it has proven to be so. The position gives me a lot of flexibility in running my own events and initiatives, and my overall goal is to make students more knowledgeable about Google products. Some of the challenges include the fact that Brandeis students seem to be extremely unengaged, especially when it comes to technology, thus making some of my initiatives harder to execute. There is also the challenge for time between all my other activities. Students can learn more about my initiatives by following Google+ page: http://goo.gl/Jpf1P
What are some of your initiatives to broaden Brandeis’ awareness of what resources Google has to offer?
Some of my initiatives so far have included informational guides on my site http://go.brandeis.edu/google which give students, faculty, and clubs detailed guides on how to use Google products to fit their needs. I just finished running a Brandeis Google Chrome theme contest in the hopes of showing student’s creative side through Google Chrome themes. I also tabled at the election night watch party in the Shapiro Campus Center, where I gave out a ton of goodies and showed students how to stay informed throughout the election using google.com/elections. Overall, Google has a ton of awesome things that I want to teach Brandeis students about, so stay tuned.
*Writer’s note: After a two-year hiatus, BUSDT is back. Support the team and show your school pride at the next home meet against Bentley University this Sunday, November 11th at 1 PM, Linsey Sports Center.
Fun stuff:
Ideal first date Beach day in Miami
Favorite food Cuban rice
Favorite beverage- alcohol/non-alcoholic Arnold Palmer
Some things you do on your spare time (hobbies, excursions, additional sports, whatever) Salsa dancing, learning Chinese
Favorite things to do back home in Miami Basking in the heat, going to the beach
Do you have a bucket list? Name 3 things on it:
1. Go from North America to Patagonia in a car
2. Watch baby turtles hatch and make it out to sea
3. Go to Ultra music festival my senior year of college