2023 Scholarship Recipients
Alima Islam
Alima is proud to call Anaheim, California her home. As she pursues her career in IT and information security, Alima hopes to continue to contribute to the vibrant tech community she has discovered within Orange County. With her sights set on her Master’s degree and beyond, Alima is excited to see where this journey takes her and the impact she will make in the world. As a determined and focused individual, Alima is the oldest of three siblings and was the first in her family to attend and graduate from college, setting a shining example for her family.
Alima graduated this spring, May 2023, with her Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology from California State University Dominguez Hills. Alima is thrilled to be attending Cal Poly Pomona in the fall of 2023 to pursue her Master’s degree in The Master of Science in Information Security. Passionate about technology and security, Alima is excited to dive deeper into this field to develop her skills and knowledge.
In addition to her studies, Alima also works as a systems specialist for North Orange County ROP, where she gets to put her passion for IT to work every day. When she’s not busy with school or work, she enjoys hiking and exploring the beautiful natural scenery of California.
Overall, Alima is grateful for the opportunities and experiences that have brought her to where she is today, and is excited to see where her journey leads.
Alondra Marin
Alondra is a student at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (CPP) majoring in Computer Science and minoring in Data Science. Alondra is a first generation student and comes from an immigrant family where her first language was Spanish and grew to understand English.
Alondra’s passion for technology began when she first laid hands on a computer and became intrigued in the world of technology as she tried to understand the way a computer functioned. Alondra now is a part of a few research projects, one of which includes creating an autonomous vehicle that will help people who are disabled or struggle to drive a vehicle. Alondra’s goals are to help create technologies that assist individuals who have a disability so that they have the same opportunities as everyone and to make the field of Computer Science more inclusive.
Another one of Alondra’s goals is to give back to her community and to mentor and support women of color to achieve careers in STEM; and to mentor young women and show that following your dream career is possible.
Anna Anderson
Anna Anderson is a senior studying computer engineering at UCLA. Professionally, she has interned at Northrop Grumman in systems engineering and at Qualcomm in embedded software. She will be returning to Qualcomm for a full-time position this fall. Anna is passionate about connecting with other women in tech and creating spaces for the community.
In her free time, she loves to hang out with her cat Bean, cook, play guitar, and do art.
Dalia Martinez
Dalia Martinez is a student at Cal State LA majoring in Computer Information Systems. She works full-time as an Application Engineer for NBC Universal and will continue learning full-time to earn her bachelor’s degree. Dalia has a ten-year-old daughter who motivates her to continue learning and growing in her career.
Edith Llontop
Edith is a senior at UC Berkeley majoring in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
A daughter of two Peruvian immigrant parents, Edith was born and raised in San Pedro, California. Edith grew up in the projects, a low-income community filled with drugs and violence and a scarce number of opportunities. But she did the best with what she had and always enjoyed school. Edith was valedictorian of her high school class and continued to pursue her passion and purpose. After participating in a National Aerospace Competition her senior year, Edith knew she wanted to work on robotics. Since then, her passion for robotics and artificial intelligence has only grown at UC Berkeley.
As a published researcher at Berkeley Artificial Intelligence Research Lab, Edith aspires to pursue her PhD.
Emma Ohmstede
Emma Ohmstede is a junior at the University of San Francisco and majoring in data science. She has a passion for math, and finds data science to be a great balance between mathematics and computer science.
A native San Diegan, her interests are cooking, thrifting (because it’s fun, economical and good for the environment), and spending time with her family, friends and her cat, Arthur.
Gabriela Lopez
Gabriela Rojas is pursuing a degree in software engineering at California State University of San Marcos.
From a young age, Gabriela learned how to be proactive in seeking out opportunities to pursue her passion. Through this journey, she has had the opportunity to participate in various computer science programs, such as Google’s Computer Science Summer Institute – Extension and Palomar College STEM Summer Robotics Institute. She has also interned at Northrop Grumman as a Technical Software Engineer and at MCTSSA as an Interdisciplinary Student Trainee. Moreover, Gabriela is currently a Treobytes facilitator for K-12 STEM enrichment classes. Gabriela is working with Dr. Suzanne Heizer, the CSUSM Bridges Coordinator, on implementing a program mapper which allows students to navigate clear transfer pathways from palomar college to CSUSM.
Gabriela was born and raised in North County San Diego and enjoys going to the farmers market, thrifting, and making arts & crafts.
Jessica Ortega
Jessica Ortega is a first-generation Mexican American woman pursuing a career in Computer Science with a minor in Data Science. She has worked hard throughout high school and college, and by doing so, was able to graduate high school at 16 and will be graduating in the Fall of 2023 at age 19 with a Bachelor of Science degree. Jessica expresses gratitude for the immense sacrifices her parents have made for her and is motivated to continue working hard and not let their efforts be in vain.
Coming from a low-income household, Jessica saw first-hand the need from low-income communities and aspires to give back to her community and support women and other unrepresented groups in pursuing their dreams of studying STEM through mentoring.
Jessica is part of a research project dealing with SPOT, the Robotic Dog from Boston Dynamics. She is working on making Spot pick-up and place packages in an accessible location for the elderly and physically disabled individuals. This project incorporates her passion for robotics and artificial intelligence into one objective. Jessica intends to use her experience and knowledge to impact the world and encourage others to do the same.
Jessica also enjoys cooking and practicing martial arts, specifically Taekwondo, in her free time.
Jocelyn Gonzalez
Jocelyn studies Computer Science at California State University, Long Beach.
Jocelyn has taken on multiple roles at her university, such as a Residential Assistant (RA) for University Housing, a Sisterhood Coordinator for the Women in Computing club, a student researcher for the LEAP Program, and a STEM Advantage scholar.
Jocelyn’s goal is to continue to develop welcoming communities for women in STEM to help the retention rate of women in technology.
Mashal Imtiaz
Mashal Imtiaz is currently pursuing a Computer Science degree at the University of California, Berkeley. Mashal transferred to Cal from Monterey Peninsula College, where she created the first Women in Stem club, led Associated Students of MPC as the President, and was the only teaching assistant for the three coding classes offered at the college.
Mashal is a first generation student who immigrated to the United States in 2012, and had to solely navigate her path into education and career. Currently, Mashal is involved in mentoring new transfers at Berkeley who intend to major in Computer or Data Science, building a GIS Map for an indigenous tribal group in North Richmond, researching the realm of ethical engineering and environmental justice, and assisting community college students in applying and preparing for internships.
Miontranese Green
Miontranese Green is a dedicated first-generation college student currently pursuing a degree in Applied Statistics at California State University of Long Beach. With a strong passion for mathematics and a talent for problem-solving, Miontranese was drawn to the field of statistics due to its focus on critical thinking and the application of math to real-world issues. As she delved deeper into her studies and began to learn computing languages, her interest in data science and technology was piqued.
Miontranese recognizes the potential for technology to address and improve financial literacy education in underrepresented communities, particularly among Black students. She sees
technology as a powerful tool for providing greater access to financial resources and education, and hopes to use her skills in data science to make a positive impact in this area. Her ultimate
goal is to create more opportunities for Black students interested in pursuing an education in STEM, helping to close the achievement gap and empower the next generation of innovators and
problem-solvers.
With her passion, skills, and dedication to using technology for social good, Miontranese is poised to make a meaningful contribution to her community and beyond.
Rocio Lopez
Rocio is a first-generation college student currently pursuing a degree in Electrical Engineering.
Raised in a low-income household and having experienced traumatic events in her childhood, Rocio struggled academically until she discovered the value of education and the importance of pursuing her dreams. Her passion for technology was ignited during a summer internship with the Naval Information Warfare Center, where she worked with microprocessors and circuits. She is inspired by seeing women in engineering accomplish great things and counts her circuit analysis professor, Parisa Kaveh, PhD, as one of her mentors.
Rocio is excited to be a 2023 Advancing Women in Technology Scholar and looks forward to making a meaningful impact in this field.
Sophia Jordan
Sophia Jordan is a senior at California State University, Fullerton pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. She has a passion for AI and philosophy and enjoys hiking, surfing and gardening.
Sophia helped build Saddleback College’s first radio telescope and helped form SC Robotics. SC Robotics became the first community college team to compete as finalists in the Mars Society’s University Rover Challenge. Following these projects, she went on to help teach robotics to middle school students in Irvine, CA.
Sophia hopes to continue contributing to projects that inspire creativity and provide a positive impact in her community.
Sandra Nguyen
Sandra Nguyen is a 2nd-year computer science major at California State Univeristy, Fullerton, with experience in data science, machine learning, and cybersecurity. She is dedicated to building her technical skills by engaging with faculty-led research programs and building exploratory software projects that aim to challenge the issues of today.
Her recent work on malicious advertisements has garnered her a passion for interdisciplinary study–merging her passions for programming and analytical writing, she has created a novel solution to detecting online threats and learned to effectively communicate her findings through the mode of conferences and research papers.
As an Asian American woman in tech, Sandra is a firm believer in organizations whose purpose is to support underrepresented groups. Sandra uses her position as student assistant for Women in Computer Science & Engineering (WiCSE) and campus director for The Percentage Project (a data-driven, national non-profit approach to inclusivity and diversity in computer science education) to encourage her peers to transcend societal barriers. She intends to pursue a master’s degree in cybersecurity and intelligent systems to help make the lives of people around her better. In her free time, Sandra enjoys playing videogames and writing creatively.
Taylor Noh
Taylor Noh is a Computer Science major with a Minor in Child and Adolescent Development at California State University, Fullerton. She has interned as a Software Engineer at Garmin, where she worked on a project for BMW, and is currently interning as a Software Engineer at CrowdStrike–a global leader in Cybersecurity.
Taylor is also a Research Assistant at the Center for Inclusive Computing and has led workshops and mentored new computer science students. She has been the President and Project Manager of the CSUF ACM-W chapter and led the Engineering and Computer Science Diversity and Leadership Summit. Taylor has a Certificate of Recognition of Leadership and Service and a Sustainability Behaviors from Text Data Scholarship Award. In all her endeavors, Taylor strives to make a positive impact on the world with technology.
