Tahani's earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from UC Berkeley, and an M.S. in Chemistry from UC Los Angeles. Her background equips her with the necessary skills to plan strategically, while being able to adapt to new project directions. Tahani found her passion for outreach during her undergraduate career as she was involved with Society of Women Engineers' outreach programs. She brought her passion to Iridescent during an internship when she was a Materials Creation Training Program Fellow (an NSF funded fellowship). Since then, she has filled the position of the Director of Educational Technology where she has helped expand Technovation Challenge to Boston, MA for the first time and establish a new Iridescent program, called Family Computer Science.
What would you say are the most challenging and the most satisfying aspects of your work?
When you do something new and innovative, you're constantly pushing yourself and learning new things along the way. So the challenge is to persevere in the face of failure, and not get discouraged. The challenges in my work actually lead to what is satisfying about my job as well, because after failure, challenges and perseverence, success is so much sweeter.
What qualifications or certifications did you attain in order to reach your professional goals?
My professional goals have actually changed with time, and so I've learned to adapt my skills while learning new ones to better suit my current passions. In general, critical thinking and problem solving skills, in addition to the ability to communicate ideas to an audience are necessary qualifications in almost any career today. These skills are naturally learned in science, technology, engineering and math majors such as computer science.
If there is one message you would like to convey to young women to encourage them to consider a profession in the ICT sector, what would it be?
Don't be afraid, and follow your instincts. Many people will have you believe that women "don't belong" in careers like ICT, and that women are just not as good at computers. They're wrong. If you feel that you don't belong somewhere, it's because people haven't welcomed you. So make a place for yourself, and be confident. Many women want to contribute to the world in a meaningful way, and solve big problems. Technology can help women achieve that, and amplify their impact at the same time.
I will inspire.
I will inspire. Technovation Challenge PSA
Technovation Challenge
Technovation Challenge Mini Documentary: entrepreneurs in the making
Ben Horowitz: The future of humankind is dependant on Technovation girls
