My name is Timothy Berry and I am from Kinston, North Carolina. Currently I am a freshman at Elizabeth City State University, located in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. I am pursuing a computer science degree with a concentration in information systems. My goal is obtain a Bachelor’s Degree and then continuing my education here to a Master’s Degree.

My mother is my inspiration to obtain experience in my field of interest and make my career happen. She is the only person to pursue and complete an education beyond high school from my immediate family. I chose my major because of the modern-aged turn the world is about to encounter, a technological turn. Just about everything that a person uses daily has some form of technology embedded within. This has always fascinated me, especially as a child with my common interest to dismantle items to see the mechanics and technology inside. Now this was very evident through computers, thus the reasoning behind my choosing of this major. I can remember countless times where I would daydream and ponder on the wonders that where taking place inside this machine called a computer. There are numerous questions that I want to be answered, so why not go to school and learn all that I can?

In the summer of 2013, I was afforded the opportunity to be a cohort in the Vikings Enhancing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (VESTEM) program, under Mr. Raynard Townsel, where I got the first taste of all that was included in my major. We took classes pertaining to our majors, up to six credit hours, and conducted many hours in the lab for research. The research topic I decided upon was the biosynthesis of ethanol, mentored by Mrs. Shanta Outlaw. Ethanol is an intoxicating agent used in fermentation and distilled liquids. It is used in beer and wines, most widely used in biofuels, and comes from two main sources: sugarcane and corn. The purpose of the research was to synthesize the ethanol and see which of the products, the testing solutions, produces the most ethanol.

I was accepted into the Center of Excellence in Remote Sensing and Research (CERSER), under the direction of Dr. Linda Hayden, program where I am exposed to all the needed knowledge pertaining to my desired major and the tools needed to be successful in my field of interest. With my education completed i would like to enter completed i would like to enter the field of software development and research with the goal of developing application to be used by the general public.