Student Posts

The Pages of Heather

Hello friends! My name is Heather Page. I graduated from FSU with a bachelor’s in both Psychology and Information Communication and Technology (ICT), and am currently in my last semester of the MS IT program. In the past couple of years, I’ve had the opportunity to travel to Iceland, Italy, and Chile: for both leisure and business ventures!

I am originally from Gainesville, FL but currently live in Tallahassee. I work for the State University System of Florida (SUS) as the Assistant Director of Public Affairs. I have been with this organization since 2019 when I started as an intern in the Social Media Coordinator position. After completing my undergraduate degrees, I had the opportunity to accept a full-time position with the Public Affairs office, assisting in communications, graphics and media content, as well as legislative duties during Session.

Looking into after graduation, I would like to focus in on a career in UX/UI Design and the certain experience and steps needed to achieve that goal. I thoroughly enjoy researching the different aspects human and computer interaction, and analyzing how a product can have effective usability for the consumer.

Some new hobbies that I’ve picked up include crocheting, knitting, and making homemade soaps and sugar scrubs. I really enjoy making heartfelt things for the people I love. 🙂

Outside of work and school, my friend and I have ventured into building an organic, natural wine importing company, called Bacchus Selection. Over the past year, we have traveled and visited various smaller, family-owned vineyards that had a focus and commitment to sustainable, organic, and biodynamic viticulture practices. The experience of hearing all the unique stories of the vineyards and their teams was truly rewarding, as well as how they lean into their local communities to make a difference. I enjoyed creating the branding, logo, and website for the company as well.

Aconcagua Valley, Hacienda Valdeperillo

Hey Siri, Who’s Kaitlyn?

Hi everyone! My name is Kaitlyn Darling and I am from Fleming Island, Florida, a small town 30 minutes south of Jacksonville. I have lived in Tallahassee since August of 2021 to finish my Bachelors degree in IT. I graduated last year and now am two semesters into my Master’s degree in IT as well. I am currently not working at the moment but would like to get a part time job this semester. However, during my last semester of my undergrad program here at FSU I had the amazing opportunity to be apart of the Spring 2023 ITS Intern Cohort for the Information Technology Services department. I was grouped with three other seniors and we worked with Microsoft as Solutions Architects to fix a problem on campus. We chose to introduce digital literacy courses to FSU’s curriculum. We spent our time researching, interviewing faculty, and surveying students. The ITS department, my fellow interns, and our Microsoft contacts made this experience an unforgettable one that I recommend to all students in my program/similar ones. Some other ideas we had were also implemented such as redesigning the FSUTranz parking app for on campus parking garages. Having my fellow interns and I’s thoughts and opinions not only listened to but real changes occurring meant so much to us.

My favorite hobby that takes up most of my free time is reading. I used to be an avid reader when I was younger but picked it back up last year. I enjoy most genres such as fantasy, romance, and mystery but prefer series more than standalone books. During my undergrad program I was Vice President of Women Wednesday’s, a social and mentoring organization. We also published blogs, one of my favorites I wrote was, 20 Books to Read in Your Twenties. I recommended a variety of books that offer wisdom, inspiration, and life lessons. One aspect of this class that interests me is these blogs. I enjoy writing as well as reading about others and their thoughts. I hope to gain a better understanding of media analysis during my time in this class. I wish the best to all of you this semester !! 🙂

My Life Mosaic

Hello!

To start off, my name is Hussein (who-sane), I completed my undergrad at the College of Business here at FSU with a B.S. in Management Information Systems, minoring in Business Analytics back in the Spring of 2022. Originally from Palm Harbor, FL, I decided to move back home upon graduation until I received a job offer to work for the Florida Auditor General here in Tallahassee as a Data Analyst in November of that same year (where I still am currently employed). So I moved back, the city just did not want me to leave, and a little under a year later I decided to go back to school to pursue a M.S. in Information Technology. Which leads me to today, where I am starting my second semester with you all.

A little bit more about myself, like I said earlier I am from Palm Harbor, FL which is located just outside of Tampa. I moved there at the age of 7, from Spain which is where I was born. My family is Lebanese and yes I am fluent in speaking Arabic. Back home, I have two younger brothers, in 9th and 7th grade as well as a sister who is a senior at the University of Florida. Yes, our house is divided unfortunately.

I love to travel, having gone to several countries across Europe as well as Lebanon over the past couple years. This past summer, I took my first ever trip to the midwest with visiting Chicago.

Not to forget mentioning, I am an avid sports fan, from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the Lightning to the Rays and most importantly the Florida State Seminoles! This year I even became a football season ticket holder.

This course is going to be a first look into the world of digital media for me and I am very excited to get into it and tackle on any challenges. Maybe even learn how I may incorporate digital media into the world of data analytics.

Florida Woman

Hi class! My name is Kendal McDowell, and my pronouns are she/her/hers. I graduated from FSU with my BA in Art History in 2022, and I’m back to earn my MSI degree. This is only my 2nd semester in the program, so I still have plenty to learn.

I live in Tallahassee, but am originally from Lakeland, FL. Lakeland is the birthplace of Publix, and my first part-time job was bagging groceries at one of the smaller stores in town. Nowadays I work in the student services office for the FSU College of Law as a full-time program coordinator. I am obsessed with the Sanrio character Gudetama, so my desk is heavily decorated with merch of the lazy egg. I think I like this character because it’s entire personality is centered around being lazy and not caring, whereas I care too much about everything all the time.

My hobbies include playing piano, playing video games, reading, consuming useless pop culture news, and walking the different trails and parks around Tallahassee. I also volunteer at the Tallahassee Museum as a living history docent. I’m really interested in history, and I love learning about local and Florida history.

While I’m familiar with a lot of the subjects this class will be covering, that familiarity is surface-level, and I want to dive deeper into areas such as video and audio editing. I have some graphic design experience from classes I took in my undergraduate studies, but in recent years, I’ve become pretty reliant on Canva for work projects. I’m not the most creative person, but I am hardworking and eager to learn.

Character Unboxing

Hi all,

My name is Bremen, and I reside right here in Tallahassee. I’m currently serving as the Technology Coordinator for FSU Libraries, where I manage the Tech Desk and the circulating technology for Strozier, Dirac, and Engineering Libraries. This marks my first semester in MSIT!

My undergraduate degree was in Studio Art, where my interests were centered around Sculpture and Electronic Art. I have a broad collection of hobbies, including photography, 3D modeling, casting, blacksmithing, and jewelry work. I also enjoy working with digital media, and I am excited to work on these projects for the course while also looking forward to expanding my knowledge of copyright licensing.

After graduating, I hope to advance past my role as a library specialist and onto a faculty position within information technology at an academic university.

The old circ desk that I spent too much time on.

Tales of a Struggling Author

Hi! I’m Katherine Stanford; you may see me occasionally show up as India Stanford (the joys of going by one’s middle name). I completed my MSI degree in December 2022 and am working on towards my Specialist degree, along with two graduate certificates: one in User Services and one in Information Architecture. I hope to finish up with this degree in Fall 2025. I’m hoping to focus on digital libraries or digital strategy. I have been job shopping, mainly with the latter as my focus, so I’ve had an online resume going for the last while.

I’m originally from Georgia, but I live in Tallahassee right now. I work at FSU, in the Public Administration department, as an Academic Program Specialist and Communications Manager. I was at Georgia State University for a few years prior to this, and prior to that, I worked at Strozier Library in various departments, including (the long-defunct) User Services, Undergraduate Programs, Systems, Administration, and Special Collections. So I lived in Southwest Georgia, Tallahassee, Atlanta, and now Tallahassee again.

Something interesting about me is, as implied by the subject line, I’ve written a few books. Two were published under my maiden name, while the third was under a pseudonym. I had hoped to use the break between my master and specialist degrees to work on the next one, but work did not exactly permit for that. That might have to come at some lull at another point, should one ever present itself.

I’m working a lot with digital media in my current position, and I have used it quite a bit in my admittedly long past online. I’ve been playing around building websites and learning what can be done with computers and online for years, from the old Geocities days to learning the WYSIWYG sites to when WordPress became the new hotness. However, because everything I know is self-taught, it will be nice to have that Information Architecture certificate to put on my resume.

In the meantime, I read nonfiction (Philippa Langley’s The Princes in the Tower: Solving History’s Greatest Cold Case has my attention right now), science fiction (I started Peter Cline’s Ex-Heroes on Audible on a long car trip in December, and I’m almost through the last book now), and fantasy (while I’ve actually read all The Sandman comics and a fair number of his books, the audio dramas of Sandman as Neil Gaiman narrates them are wonderful. I could ramble about true crime, mythology, and folklore until the day ends as well, but that’s also a story for another time. You’ll probably see any one of my three cats come across the screen any time my camera is on: the two black cats are Luci and Samara, while the orange cat is Copperfield.

And that’s a bit about this struggling author. I’m looking forward to this class!

It’s Giving…

Howdy y’all!


My name is Jovemyrdha Charles, but please, call me Jo! I am currently based in Miami, Florida, and when I’m not ranting into the ether about the insane rent hikes (seriously, $1850 for a studio with no W/D hookups? hard pass!) I’m counting pills at work and showing customers where to find MiraLAX or the E.L.F. makeup display. Honesty time: I’m actually from North Miami Beach, more specifically, Uleta, but no one knows where that is, so it’s just easier to say that I’m from Miami.


If you hadn’t guessed it, I currently work in a retail pharmacy, and if you think I look familiar, there’s a strong chance that you’ve been to a CVS and had a prescription filled by me. What does healthcare have to do with pursuing an MSI? Well, besides both being disappointments to my mother (she’s still upset that I didn’t go the nursing route or become a doctor), they’re both careers where my direct actions can improve the lives of those I interact with. Libraries have always been safe spaces for me, and I would love to provide that same experience for the kids who don’t have internet access at home or a stable home life that would make them eager to return home after school.


My experience with libraries started when I was just 12 years old and part of the media team in my middle school’s library. While my best friends ran the morning announcements, I was stamping books, pushing around book carts, and helping students find the next Holes (honesty time again: I meant Captain Underpants; for some reason, kids at my school loved that series). It was that experience that landed me my first internship at Florida International University when I was a junior in high school and my first library job at Miami Dade College. All of these experiences have shaped me into the person I am today and, as a result, have allowed me to “dip my toes” into the library world to decide if this is the career path for me. (Spoiler alert: IT SURE IS.).

Try as I might, I cannot beat the weird kid allegations since I not only participated in marching band during my high school years but also majored in anthropology for my undergraduate degree. My hobbies include singing (very off-key) along to musical soundtracks, throwing ingredients together to create something edible, and reading, duh!

Please enjoy this super cheesy photo of my boyfriend, Alex, and me at a Hannukah party in our matching pajamas (and yes, they DO light up).

A little something about me

Yes, I live in the park. At least, that’s my future goal. For now, I still live in Tampa, but in a little shack by the bay until the zoo opens a slot for someone as special as me.

At the moment, I’m finishing my last semester before graduating from FSU’s MSIT curriculum.

Ahhh, the question of where do I work comes into view. If I tell you then I might have to …… I work for the Navy. Not too sure where I was going to go with that one. I was hoping it might make things a little more interesting. Here is a youtube video from my previous job. Can you find me? Oh, if the video isn’t playing, here is the link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPLIcIvaGxY

I had a photo to show everyone but….. no more than 2 pictures here. I’m not about to make people higher than me angry. Here is a link to the picture just in case.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secret_Squirrel

Special interests of mine since I’ve moved to this lovely city is to swim with the manatees and be acknowledged as one of their own. High hopes with low probability here but, I won’t get my hopes up.

If you want a straight forward answer for my reasoning behind taking this class, I’ll shoot it to you as straight as I can. Everyone I have talked to recommended this class to me and said how much fun it was. So, here I am ladies and gentlemen.

Strings & Screens

Hey everyone! My name is Pritish. I am an international student born and raised in India. I have been living in Tallahassee since fall 2023. I am pursuing my master’s degree in information technology from Florida State University. I worked as a project engineer for a multinational company in India for a year after I graduated.

I like to play and learn guitar I took this as a hobby during my undergraduate years. I wanted to learn how to play guitar ever since I was a kid but I did not got the chance to do so. During the COVID lockdown, I started to learn guitar on a regular basis. I also like to play video games especially open-world games as it is always fun to explore and find the various things developers have added to open-world games.

I also like to watch movies especially comedy movies or movies from Marvel Cinematic Universe or DC Cinematic Universe. Here is the list top 100 comedy movies to watch. I have always liked photography and I always wanted to learn cinematography. I hope to learn basic image editing and video editing to enhance my photography skills.

My favorite picture with my Guitar

A Life on the Buffeting Seas

Heavy Seas – Eric Kilby

(The above is penned with the sincerest apologies to Emily Dickinson)

https://wwnorton.com/books/master-and-commander/

When I need a taste of the real thing, I go to the Clearwater Sailing Center

https://ccsc1001.clubexpress.com/

and rent a Sunfish. These little boats are very light and fast; this often makes for very wet sailing, as they are more than easy to capsize.

Soaking wet after capsizing!