Innovation Development Essay

As an innovator, I believe every human being is capable of anything they put their mind to. The road may be long and littered with failures, but those failures pave the way for success. I have never backed down from a challenge, and I will continue my courageous endeavor to challenge myself for the rest of my life. I have spent my time at UCCS honing my innovative skills, gaining confidence in my abilities, and exercising my passion for innovation and technology. As I move forward in my career as an innovative software engineer, I reflect on the impact I will make on the world and how I can utilize technology to turn ideas into impact and improve lives in my community, country, and worldwide.

I care deeply about my community and the current state of mental health care in the United States. People with mental illness in the U.S. face barriers to accessing quality care when needed most, such as a lack of information regarding resources, financial costs, and social stigma. In 2020, I worked on an interdisciplinary team of students from UCCS, Colorado College, and the Airforce Academy to develop a solution to ever-increasing teen suicide rates in El Paso County, Colorado, which has one of the highest teen suicide rates in the country. Our team worked on mapping suicide and emotional health programs in the county and identifying gaps in care and communication. We developed an online tool that improved information exchange between schools, parents, mental health providers, and students, allowing those gaps to close. In the future, I would like to expand on this work and use technology to destigmatize mental illness

As a Louisiana native, I know first-hand how devastating hurricanes and other natural disasters can be on a community; rebuilding a destroyed community can take years and is often hindered by poor organization. In the fall of 2021, I worked with an interdisciplinary team of students to innovate a solution for a client who worked to rebuild the U.S. Virgin Islands after hurricanes destroyed them. Our client facilitated FEMA applications and distributed work orders to contractors around the islands; however, they were a small company of two individuals and did not have a streamlined method of obtaining organized records or issuing work orders to contractors when the islands were without reliable internet for weeks to months at a time.

As the only team member with app development experience, I spearheaded the effort to design an application that allowed our client to keep well-organized, streamlined records and receive photographic records of completed work. The application also provided information about active wifi hotspots around the islands where contractors can receive and update work orders. I envision continuing this work to expand FEMA’s ability to issue and complete work orders through technology to every area of the country that experiences devastating natural disasters. Unfortunately, such regions are increasing in number and size due to the escalating impacts of climate change; now more than ever, it is essential for these communities to rebuild and become more resilient as quickly as possible.

The United States is experiencing increasing political divide and instability, an experience we share with many parts of the world. Much of the political disagreement worldwide comes from infighting between different religious groups, some of which resort to violence against other religious communities. As an American woman, I am incredibly concerned with religion’s role in the United States government and its abuse of power to disregard scientific evidence to uphold laws that directly impact individual autonomy.

There is a lot to be learned from the relationships between religions and secular people in ages past, such as how they viewed each other, worked together, and how relationships changed. However, many of the documents from those ages are in danger of being lost to climate change, political instability, and natural decay.

 During my final semester at UCCS, I co-lead a team of Computer Science, Game Design, and Cyber Security students to implement a solution for an international client interested in digitally preserving manuscripts from the Dark Ages in hopes that they will provide insight into how people of different religions interacted with each other and improve relations between religions today. The application utilizes crowd-sourcing to allow everyday citizens to upload photographs, translations, and relevant metadata of manuscripts they find in their local area to a centralized database where researchers and historical communities may access and study them.  

This project is an excellent example of how technology can shed light on the past and ensure we do not forget our history. In a disorganized global community, crowd-sourcing local information to piece together the larger picture has an invaluable impact on our future and our ability to thrive in the face of global challenges. Such impact is an honor to make on the world, and it is projects like this one that I find immense passion and drive to continue.

I spend much of my free time innovating to make my own life easier. I developed an iOS application to centralize tutorial videos for a dance hobby, keep track of the tricks and moves I’ve learned, and provide a way to generate new combinations of moves. I automated my home’s lights, electrical outlets, climate control, and security system, integrating products from various manufacturers to work together seamlessly through a centralized home automation hub.

My innovation experience extends beyond technology, and I am passionate about using technology to solve non-technical problems. When I became a homeowner, I learned to use power tools to renovate areas of my home and build custom storage solutions into a house with very little built-in storage. I learned 3D modeling to design various storage solutions and print them with a 3D printer, including a makeup organizer customized to my bathroom layout, a wall mount for my V.R. headset and controllers, and a fix for a broken cabinet that prevented me from needing to buy a new one. These experiences prepared me for a career of finding problems and innovating creative solutions while learning new skill sets.

These experiences taught me that failure is always a prerequisite for success. I dare to face failure in my endeavor to innovate solutions that help improve quality of life for people worldwide. As a software engineer, I believe technology is the key to improving many facets of human existence. Technology can improve our lives beyond our imagination, whether through climate change and our ability to live on Earth, political instability, health, transportation, entertainment, or creativity. I will continue to make impacts throughout my life, and I look forward to a career of turning ideas into impact that help improve lives around the world.