Fall 2021 Retrospective

Fall 2021 — What a semester. One in which it simultaneously felt like I was doing nothing and everything. A lot of what I’d been working on through college came to a crescendo this semester, and a lot of goodbyes and new hellos starting the next. Here’s a quick summary of what happened in Fall 2021! Read about what I’m currently doing here.

Education#

This fall, I’m studied Operating Systems and Systems Programming, Optimization Models in Engineering, and Microeconomics. These classes were pretty challenging. The operating systems class included a 3-part project where we designed our own toy operating system. In the optimization class, we studied graduate-level models and methods. I also took a course in the Ethics of Computer Science. I really enjoyed this class! Many of these sessions made me think much more deeply about CS as a career, and I’m very thankful for a space to have those conversations.

Teaching#

I taught CS61A this semester — and for the first time, taught a 2x-speed advanced section. Take a peek at my personal website for the class here. This was a fun endeavor. I had to push myself each week to understand the class material more thoroughly, hunt for better ways to explain concepts, and find more challenging questions for the class. I daresay this was my favorite semester teaching 61A!

I’m also an instructor for the Introduction to Full Stack Development Decal here at Berkeley, a computer science class that teaches students the principles of web development and design. While I’m moving on to an advisory role next semester, the decal continues to be offered and evolved by subsequent generations. I think we’ve managed to create a class for Berkeley students that prepares them to dive into devleoping their own integrated web apps, and I’m excited to see the decal grow!

BEGIN Developer#

I wrapped my work at Berkeley SCET’s Gateway To Innovation Program this semester. This project has been a labor of love, a symbol of my hope to make the Berkeley startup community a more welcoming, integrated space. I like to think that the initiative helped remove some silos from the ecosystem, and encouraged organizations to create better offerings. As I leave the org, I hope that BEGIN can take a much more central role in the coming new years, creating more spaces for innovation than currently exist in Berkeley.

Cal Hacks#

8.0!! Nothing comes close to organizing a hackathon. From botched ceremonies, to golf cart rides around campus, to carrying around literal tons of swag, to seeing more really cool projects in action — organizing Cal Hacks remains one of my dearest college memories. I will forever be a believer that builders are essential to a great community, and there isn’t really a club that encourages building quite like Cal Hacks.

Previous Abouts#

Check out what I did last summer or last spring!