Born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Earned a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of California Riverside, completed a Graduate Geographic Information Systems certificate from the University of West Florida to help transition to a career in geographic information science, and volunteered for a great non-profit called Blueprint Earth as a student volunteer and GIS Analyst intern. Worked at a GIS consulting firm for nearly two years. My experience there inspired me to sign up for a drone course at Rio Hondo College this spring to add that to my skillset. Additionally, I’ve been working on a M.S. in Geographic Information Science Administration program online through the University of West Florida while searching for opportunities as a GIS Analyst.
My appreciation for earth sciences and maps started long ago since grade school. It was during my undergrad years at UC Riverside that I was first introduced to the world of GIS. Having worked in the Anthropology department’s Eastern Information Center, which is part of the California Historical Resources Information System (CHRIS), I had the opportunity to work with physical maps and record new data coming from cultural resource management firms throughout the state. At the time I had not taken an Introduction to GIS course yet to better grasp the significance of having all that information in a digitized format. The rest, as they say, was history.
Outside of work and academics, I enjoy outdoor activities, video and tabletop games, hunting down new music, reading, films, baking, and trying my hand at photography. As a step to become more active the past couple of years, I began participating in a half marathon series that donates to the National Park Foundation with my mother. They’ve taken us to Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Zion in Utah, and Yosemite in California. When road trips are hard to justify, you can probably find me at a local live concert.