Meet Isaac Vervair

Isaac Vervair is one of our recent graduates in the Youth for Tech Training Pilot (YTTP). He is currently a student in the Diverse Media Institute at High School for Recording Arts (HSRA) located in St. Paul, MN.Isaac says he was connected to the YTTP program through an advisor at District 279 where he attended high school.

He shared his thoughts on the course and says, “Yasin has made the course engaging for us, we’ve been hands on since day one and we’re learning something new every class. It’s also been super interesting, and it keeps me busy with a bit of challenge. My overall experience here has been positive and very beneficial. The knowledge I now have of computer science compared to when I first started is fascinating as well as the new skills I’ve gained. Prior to this course, I never got the chance to dive into learning about computer programming and I think this course was a great starting point for me.” Isaac adds, “We covered eight different modules in class and one of my favorites was the hardware module. We learned about the physical elements in a computer and a phone as well as what the extraction of these elements is doing to the environment. It was interesting to learn that increasing production of computers can have negative impacts on the environment due to the unethical acquisition of elements in the physical hardware. There’s a much larger relationship between technology and the environment than many people may think.”

Isaac’s career plans are a perfect mix of what he loves most – music and technology. Isaac is currently into music production where he records, mixes, and edits music using various production tools. Isaac currently attends Diverse Media Institute where has access to many resources to create and mix music. At DMI, Isaac says they learn about the business and production of music, but he most enjoys learning about the art of music. Being able to express himself through music is what he enjoys most. He does mention that he’s grateful to have learned to code through the YTTP course because he plans on building his own site to market his music business.

 

Meet DaMiracle Pendleton

DaMiracle Pendleton is one of our recent graduates in the Youth for Tech Training Pilot (YTTP). She is currently a student at High School for Recording Arts (HSRA) located in St. Paul, MN. She first learned about the YTTP program through one of her teachers at HRSA.

She says that she values the concepts and skills she’s learned from the course. “I’ve learned so much in this class and one of my favorite things was learning how to fix old phones, a skill I plan on using. My overall favorite thing though was learning to code, it seemed a bit intimidating at first but with Yasin’s help I was able to figure it out. I was amazed at learning about hackers and how they can access our servers and information so easily, but we learned ways to protect ourselves from these types of issues. We were provided laptops to learn coding and even create our own websites. We also went to Repowered for one of modules where we were hands on with computer and phone hardware.”

DaMiracle mentions her overall class experience has helped her flourish as a student, stating "I've gained important knowledge that I can apply to my everyday life since technology is so present around us. It’s been a fun experience for me. As for my future career plans, I want to be a computer technician or maybe a software engineer.”