I became interested in computer science when an alumnus of a local University came to my middle school and informed the honor seventh grade students about the shortage of minorities in the computer science and engineering fields. I have felt compelled since then to make it a goal to become a computer scientist. I have also been working to the best of my ability in completing this goal since that day.

As a graduate student here at Elizabeth City State University (ECSU), I take full advantage of many prosperous opportunities that the university has to offer. Four years prior to graduating I was accepted into the Center of Excellence in Remote Sensing Education and Research (CERSER) program. Under the direction of Dr. Linda Hayden through CERSER, I participated in various training and research opportunities. Throughout my college career in the CERSER program, I have participated in training activities that range from all about digital cameras and writing a scientific paper to ArcGis and Mobile Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) training.

I have had ample opportunities engaging research. In the Spring semester of 2008, I was given the chance to present my research at the University of New Hampshire. My team member and I presented a poster on the Polycom PVX software and Polycom 8000VSX teleconferencing systems. This was in support of the main polar grid project's goal to travel to Greenland and collect data. I have also been given the opportunity to be involved on the Remote Sensing team this past Summer in the Undergraduate Research Experience internship. We modeled beach erosion using video imaging supported by prior research from the Field Research Facility in Duck, North Carolina. Entering my second semester sophomore year I was a member of the Polar Grid team. My team and I developed a 64-node test cluster for the university from the data collected on a recent trip to Greenland.

In the Summer of 2009 I was an undergraduate researcher for the Center for the Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets (CReSIS) at the University of Kansas, in Lawerence, Kansas. The primary goal of this research was to automate the process of ice sheet thickness estimation. Previously this process took around forty-five minutes per file. Now after the development of the edge-based and active-contour programs, from my team's research, it takes approximately 1 to 2 1/2 minutes per file. This enormous amount of saved time can now be allotted to different more important task. This CReSIS internship was definitely the most fulfilling internship research experience I have completed thus far.

This past Summer of 2010 I had the opportunity to participate in the University of New Hampshire (UNH) Research and Discover Program. This program was very interesting. I was able to work along side a world renown researcher, Dr. Mark Fahnestock, who is also one of the top glaciologist in the United States. The purpose of my summer work was to investigate the ice flow and ice velocity changes in two Greenland outlet glaciers. The changes in the ice velocities were investigated using a program written in MATLAB that tracked the most prevalent features in the ice. Nunatakavsaup Sermia(NKS) was the northernmost glacier and was the source for the highest ice velocities through the years of 2002 and 2005. This change was primarily due to a large ice front retreat. In return this directly affected the ice velocities throughout the years investigated. Through the years of 2002 to 2005 there was an increase in velocity of this glacier by 5 meters per year, which is approximately 1,875 meters per year. Kangiata Nunata Sermia (KNS) showed a slight variation in velocity but this change was not a significant amount throughout the years that the data was available.

I was able to travel back to UNH for my fourth internship in the summer of 2011. I worked with Mike Routhier who is a researcher in the UNH Earth Oceans and Space (EOS) department. During a period of ten weeks I was able to develop a 3D map of Strawbery Banke for the assessment of vulnerability due to sea level rise. Strawbery Banke is a modern day history museum that contains some of the oldest structures and homes in North America. High tide and storm surges provide substantially more water underneath the structures. The water intrudes into the basements during this period of time and the salt water iodizes the main structural components that hold the homes together. My creations of the 3D model allowed different scenarios to be modeled from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). I look forward to participating in many more prosperous opportunities, which will further develop my education.