Student Posts

Hello everyone! My name is Olivia Samimy and I am originally from Fredericksburg, Virginia. I went to a tiny college called Roanoke College in southwestern Virginia, where I received my BA with a major in Literary Studies and a minor in Communications in 2021.

In 2022, I moved to Tallahassee to complete my MA in Literature, Media, and Culture. During this time, I also served as a Graduate Instructor where I taught Freshman English to FSU students. I graduated from this program in May 2024 and haven’t been able to escape Tallahassee yet. I am currently working as an Academic Advisor at FSU in the Dedman College of Hospitality, where I help guide undergraduate students through their degree. I started my MSI last semester, and my goal is to become an academic librarian. I love working with college students so I look forward to continuing to do that in my career. 

As is probably unsurprising for someone like me, I love to read. My favorite genres are mystery and fantasy. You can check out my Goodreads account to see what I am currently reading. My other favorite activity is to be out in nature. If you live in Tallahassee, you may know we have an incredible park system. My two favorite places to hike are Maclay Gardens State Park and Lafayette Heritage Trail. You can find me at a park any weekend where we’re blessed with weather below 90 degrees. If it’s too hot for hiking, I like to make the drive to St. George Island and sit on the beach.

When I am not enjoying the fresh air, I try to keep my two cats, Honey and Bessie, out of mischief. At this, I am mostly unsuccessful. 

I look forward to a great semester with y’all!

I am a year into the MIS program at Florida State University and am hoping to graduate December of this year! How the time flies! With my degree, I hope to continue working in academic institutions in the future. When I am not in class or at work, I try to travel as much as I can and have been to 6 countries so far! The photo above is of me in Ireland (my favorite place 🍀) on a trip last year!

Hi everyone! I’m Michelle Taylor, originally from Sacramento, California. Growing up, I was one of four children, and at 10 years old, I learned I was adopted. This sparked a lifelong journey of self-discovery, including a quest to find my biological family.

Life has been a whirlwind! A short career in the military, two marriages, two wonderful adult children, and moves across the country—from California to Texas, South Carolina, Georgia, and now Florida—(Zephyrhills to be precise) have shaped who I am today. As an empty nester, I’ve embraced this new chapter, exploring my passions and rediscovering myself.

My interests are diverse: I’m a UFC enthusiast (I’ve even been to two live events!), an avid reader who co-hosts a book club at my place of employment, and a fan of streaming services like Netflix and Paramount+. I also enjoy connecting with people through Postcrossing, a website where I exchange postcards worldwide.

A significant turning point came during the pandemic when I submitted my DNA to Ancestry. This led to a remarkable discovery: I found my biological father and learned I have a sister and brother, all still living in Sacramento!

I’m excited to be in the MSI program, where I hope to learn about different careers, particularly- web design and usability. I currently work as an admin assistant at an insurance company, and am enjoying my new role as a ‘dog mom’ to Sadie, my 11-week-old Goldendoodle.

Hello everyone! My name is Amanda Pazos, and I currently live in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. I’m pursuing a master’s degree in information with a focus on cultural informatics, and I’m excited to say this is my final semester!

Currently, I work as an assistant controller at a medical glove company, though I’m eager to transition into a new career as an information professional. Recently, I had the opportunity to work in the archives department at Vizcaya Museum and Gardens. This hands-on experience ignited my passion for digital archives and deepened my interest in preserving history through innovative technology.

In my free time, I enjoy traveling, reading, spending time at the beach, and attending concerts. My favorite genres to read are fantasy and romance. Musically, I appreciate a variety of styles but tend to gravitate to pop and rock. I also collect vinyl records, which I love for their unique sound. There’s a warmth and depth to vinyl, and even the subtle imperfections—like the snap and crackle as they play—add to the overall listening experience.

One of my lifelong goals is to visit every national park in the United States. Connecting with nature and taking in breathtaking landscapes is incredibly rewarding, making every hike worthwhile. So far, my favorite parks have been Zion National Park in Utah and Yosemite National Park in California.

I’m excited about this class and the opportunity to gain valuable skills in creating and managing digital content. I hope to discover new resources that will help me design more engaging posts and master the art of storytelling. These skills will be vital for crafting compelling narratives and visuals, particularly in archives and cultural preservation.

Best of luck to everyone this semester!

Hello, classmates! My name is Kristopher DeMarco, but I prefer just Kris. I was born in Michigan, lived in Nevada, and eventually moved to Florida in 2010. My hometown is Naples and I go back there every so often to see my parents. Currently, I live in Tallahassee, right next to campus. I love being close to campus, as I appreciate a good walk or run through the university. I have two bachelors degrees from the University of Florida and Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers. After obtaining my second degree, I knew my next step was a graduate degree. I love being in school and hope to continue my education throughout my life. Deciding on FSU for graduate school was an easy choice because I previously lived and attended FSU and enjoyed it thoroughly. Not to mention the cost of in-state tuition is much cheaper! I am in the MSIT program in my second semester and so far, it has been going well, and I have enjoyed learning about IT. I am also pursuing the Information Architecture and User Services Graduate Certificate. I was recently hired as an intern for the virtualization team at FSU’s Information Technology Services. There I hope to continue my learning and narrow down exactly what type of IT I want to delve into. I am interested in cybersecurity and usability. Some of my hobbies include reading traveling, watching sports and movies, and video games. I love reading thrillers and just finished a great Dean Koontz novel, TickTock. It was a quick read but entertaining nonetheless, I recommend it if you like thrillers! I watch many sports events and occasionally will bet when I am feeling risky, although usually I do not win any money. My favorite sports teams that I follow religiously include the LA Chargers, Miami Heat, and Atalanta BC. I am so excited to take this class, specifically working with web-based tools. Last semester, I took Design and Production of Network Multimedia and enjoyed it a lot. We created a basic website using HTML and CSS, which I want to learn more about. I hope to gain knowledge and more experience with website tools in this class and meet peers interested in similar aspects of IT.

I leave you all with a picture of one of my favorite events I have ever witnessed: the solar eclipse in Texas in April of this year!

Hey y’all, my name is Heather Kwak. I was born and raised in Jacksonville, FL. I lived in Tallahassee when I was pursuing my bachelor’s degree in IT, but I moved back home after I graduated. I work at a local high school as an IT Coordinator. I am responsible for providing technical support and troubleshooting for high school students and faculty, with a specific focus on iPads used by students

I have always been into some form of arts and crafts. I love painting with acrylic, drawing with charcoal, making Kandi cuffs, and using the sewing machine. I am excited to create videos in this class since I used to create animated videos using game characters from Maple Story as a child and have used programs like Windows Movie Maker and Sony Vegas.

I have two dogs at home named Junpyo and Khalifa. The photo on the right is a photo of Khalifa when she was a puppy. I also used to have a cat named Pumpkin and she is missed very much.

I am looking forward to learning about copyright because it has always been hard for me to wrap my head around it on my own when I was creating videos as a 12 years old.

Hello! My name is Jocelyn Hsu, and I am currently in the last semester of my Master of Science in Information degree (yay!). I was born in Taiwan and emigrated to the States as a child, and am currently based in Orlando, Florida.

A fun fact about me is that I studied violin performance at FSU for my undergraduate degree, and am a professional musician! Since childhood, I’ve always known that being a performer was my calling, and after graduating college I was blessed with the opportunity to tour and gig full-time…until COVID-19 hit. Then I was unemployed for almost a year before unexpectedly picking up a job as a library assistant at one of Lockheed Martin‘s research libraries. While in college I had worked several years at FSU’s Allen Music Library, so this job was familiar territory for me. After a few years I was itching for more growth and engagement, which ultimately led me to this MIS program.

I currently work as an junior research librarian by day, grad student by night, and performer at all other times! I like to joke with my colleagues that I moonlight as a librarian, although now I personally feel that music and libraries are both my callings.

What interests me about this class is how digital media and technology evolve as science and innovation advance. The transformation of technology, and subsequently, the skills needed to use those technologies, have followed me from grade school through post-secondary education; I remember learning how to type in elementary computer class, designing Piczo websites with my friends in middle school, figuring out how to edit Instagram photos in high school, and learning how to create audio recordings in undergrad. All those skills came in handy later during my music career since I now manage my own professional website, edit videos and graphics for social media and promotional content, and make professional audio recordings for auditions, records, and other artists. And as digital media advances, I am keenly aware that my learning will never end as an information professional–I feel compelled to learn and master new digital tools to the best of my ability so I can better help patrons. I hope the knowledge and skills I gain from this class will equip me for librarianship in every community and niche I find myself in.

Hello everyone! My name is Liv (she/her) Sampogna, I come to you today from my very sleepy writer’s desk in Roanoke, Virginia. I settled here after attending Roanoke College, from which I graduated with a BS in environmental studies and creative writing in 2021.

If my life were a Muppet movie, I would be played by a lost and troubled Gonzo who, having no idea what planet she belongs on after college, moves in with her stranger of a roommate, Fozzy Bear (my dear friend Audrey). Luckily for Gonzo, Fozzy Bear has already found her life path as a Librarian, and enlightens Gonzo about all that it means to be a Librarian, Gonzo quickly realizes this is where she belongs and expresses this epiphany in song. Gonzo would first be accepted by a library down in Fraggle Rock where, though she has a great deal of fun and finds her footing, doesn’t find herself able to relate well enough to the cave-dwellings Fraggles. After earning enough experience, Gonzo begins working for the library on whatever planet he’s from, where he meets the rest of the Muppet’s cast, all of whom play a part in Gonzo’s library journey!

I am realizing now I don’t want to make the whole post in that format because it’s very discombobulating. I’ve been working as a Youth Librarian for Roanoke Public Libraries since 2022 and though I had never realized I was a kids-and-teens-person, I’ve definitely found my calling! I do a couple of Storytimes every week with wildly played-out themes, I have a group of artistic teens who started off as a “Zine Club” and now is just generally an art club, and I do many other miscellaneous things! This is my fourth semester at FSU, I’m very grateful that my system allows me to work as a capital “L” Librarian in the mean time.

Outside of librarianship, I also work at a historic theatre in my neighborhood as a bartender which is, unsurprisingly, a very fun gig. I love to read, watch YouTube videos about books, and spend hours on my book logging app, please feel free to add me on StoryGraph! I love collaging, painting, sewing, writing and unabashedly love (slow) fashion. As to why I’m excited about this class, I feel like digital media allows everyone to be an artist, as well as for the collaging of different mediums (visual, audio) which brings ease to expressing bigger ideas. Also, because digital media is so widely shareable, nurturing digital art/artists makes the internet a more inspiring and creative space. Speaking of, has anyone ever used Are.na? It’s sort of like Pinterest but for research: you can connect links, journals, videos, quotes and pictures to different topics (“channels”).

Hi everyone! My name is Mariah Fuertes, it’s lovely to meet you all. 

I’m a born and raised Florida native. I’ve lived in three different major cities: Tampa, Fort. Lauderdale, and now, Orlando. My husband and I enjoy the Central Florida area, however, every now and then I’m tempted to move North in order to experience the changing of the seasons. 

Currently, I wear two hats: I’m a part-time Library Assistant and a Reference Intern at Valencia College. I love what I do and feel fortunate enough to work in an environment that not only supports my career growth, but allows me to balance motherhood graciously. I have an almost two-year-old daughter who keeps me on my toes. She’s my pocket-sized best friend. My days off are usually spent playing with baby dolls, singing Ms. Rachel songs, and reading piles of books together.

I began my MSI journey in Fall of 2023 and will be graduating this Summer in 2025. I’m excited to begin my career as a librarian post graduation, as well as have the opportunity to (hopefully) expand upon my other interests/academic skills. I also have a BA in English from the University of Central Florida and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Full Sail University. My goal is to either be a Youth Services or Academic Librarian.

In my spare time, I’m also an aspiring author of fantasy and literary fiction. I’m convinced that escaping reality is the best coping mechanism, as I’d much rather get lost in a floating castle than pay for a therapist. As a writer, my goal is to craft stories that challenge the unimaginable, and make even the most skeptical believe in the subtle magic of everyday life. 

When I’m not editing story drafts, you can find me binge watching Bravo TV, practicing beginner ballet, cozy gaming on my Switch, or strolling down Main Street at Walt Disney World. 

I enjoy digital media creation, and have studied different variations of it in the past! I’m looking forward to learning about new programs, tips & tricks, and overall gaining some insight on how to properly incorporate digital content into the LIS field. 

Wishing you all a great semester! 🙂