New Crew Members: Pragya and Kayla
Meet our new interns, Kayla and Pragya! Like many before them, they are joining us from the YWCA's front-end development bootcamp, YWeb Career Academy.
They've jumped right into the program, attending Forward Fest events with us in their first week and exploring all the moving parts of Ten Forward.
Read on to learn more about what drew them to the YWeb program, what they are looking forward to learning at Ten Forward, and what their ideal Sunday looks like.
Why did you decide to attend YWeb?
Kayla: It was free and gave me a chance to gain a skill that could open new doors for me. I wanted to switch industries because the service industry fluctuated too much. I needed more stability for my son and myself. I have always been interested in computers and technology.
Pragya: I was taking business classes but I was always interested in tech, but I didn’t want to do a degree change without knowing if tech would be a right fit for me. To find out more, I participated in local tech networking meetup groups where someone introduced me to the YWeb. YWeb was perfect for me to get introduced to the basics of web development.
What drew you to apply at Ten Forward after school?
Kayla: I did some of my mock interviews with Ten Forward and the company made a great impression on me. I love that the company is dedicated to having a diverse team in technology, with such a positive vibe.
Pragya: I really liked the company culture the most! I also felt that people were really relaxed, cheerful, happy and supportive of each other, which I think is very rare. Additionally when I found that they encourage and support women and nonbinary folks to come forward in tech I really had to apply.
What are you looking forward to learning or doing as an intern?
Kayla: I had been looking for an internship because I wanted to feel more confident in my skills and be able to learn as I had real work life situations/tasks.
Since the things that I learned with YWeb were beginner level introductions to the different possibilities; I am looking forward to learning what direction I end up leaning towards in my career path. I am open to learning all the different paths I have available to me.
Pragya: I want to explore areas in IT and want to figure out what area I would be a good fit. I also want to have a mentor out of school.
Describe your perfect Sunday afternoon.
Kayla: Having NOTHING to do. Just spending time with my son.
Pragya: Enjoying the sunset and reading a book or spending time / hiking with friends.
What's something about you people might find surprising?
Kayla: I know how to play the clarinet.
Pragya: I attend a 10-day silent meditation retreat every year.
Fill in the blanks: "If I could only __ one __ for the rest of my life, it would be __."
Kayla: If I could only spend time with one person for the rest of my life, it would be my son.
Pragya: If I could only read one book for the rest of my life, it would be "Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle.
Favorite board game or video game, TV show or movie, band or musician, emoji.
Kayla:
Board game: maybe Mancala or Mastermind
Video game: I really love(d) Super Mario World on Super Nintendo but lately I haven’t really played many games. I will pick up my Nintendo switch lite and play some Minecraft since its like a virtual legos for and somewhat mindless for me. Otherwise if I want to be more active, I have some games on my Oculus that I enjoy, like beat saber
TV show: there are way too many but I just started watching House of Dragon
Band or musician: another one that I don’t think I could narrow it down especially since my music taste varies from Edda James, Temptations, Chicago, to Kendrick Lamar, Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, Da Baby, to Mozart
Emoji: 😑💩🍺🍻🥃🍸💵
Pragya:
Board Game: Jenga
TV Show: Anne with An E
Musician: Astrid S.
Emoji: ❤️
Star Trek or Star Wars?
Kayla: Since Star Wars has several new versions of shows that have come out recently, I would have to pick Star Wars (only because I recently watched all the new shows and a few movies). I never really watched Star Trek like that and only remember ever watching a few episodes when I was younger.
Pragya: Haven’t watched any, but would sure choose trekking over a war! 🙃