7 Veterans Making an Impact in Tech
Veterans Day is an opportunity for everyone to reflect and remember all those who have served and the sacrifices they’ve made.
Being headquartered in San Diego, serving our veterans community has always been an enormous part of our mission. And now, we’re incredibly honored to serve veterans across the United States.
In honor of Veterans’ Day, we wanted to highlight seven veterans who are massive parts of our LEARN community and are now making significant contributions to the tech world.
1. Diego Hernandez
Diego Hernandez is a LEARN alumni from our Bravo 2021 cohort. He served in the Army for around five and a half years before deciding to take a giant leap into a career change. He was always interested in the tech industry and was excited to work somewhere where his skills are valued.
He decided to come to LEARN academy after exploring other Bootcamps but felt our internship opportunities would help him stand out.
Right now, Diego is working as a Developer Support Analyst at FBS Data.
“Don’t be afraid to make the jump. The only thing I regret is not doing it sooner.”
2. Kirk Wang
Kirk Wang is a LEARN alumni from our Echo 2021 cohort. He has been serving the Army Reserve since 2001 and plans to stop in 2024 when his contract runs out. He loves tech because he’s happy to automate those repetitive tasks he hates doing.
Kirk chose to come to LEARN academy based on recommendations from coworkers who enjoyed the program.
Currently, Kirk is working with one of our company partners Scientist.com as a Software Developer.
“A big thing I learned was that emails and messages have tones behind them. Sending emails to my chain of command always has to be very to the point, with the bottom line up front. In my civilian jobs, it’s usually a little warmer and fuzzier than that, so that was something to get used to.”
3. Kelly Evans
Kelly Evans is a LEARN alumni from our Delta 2021 cohort. She served in the Army for about four years. Seeing her coworkers transition their skills into tech got her interest in making the switch herself.
She chose to attend LEARN because she felt we understood that there is an emotional component to learning a new skill set and our holistic approach was reassuring.
Kelly is currently working as an Associate Software Engineer with Drata, one of our company partners, and loves it!
“Many veterans tend to assume they should transition into a career related to what they did in the military. However, veterans bring numerous transferable skills to the civilian world regardless of military background.”
4. Thomas Nguyen
Thomas Nguyen is a LEARN alumni from our Charlie 2021 cohort. He served in the Army for about three years and is currently serving in the CA National Guard. As an army medic, the similarities between medicine and coding drew him to the tech industry.
He chose to attend LEARN because we enjoyed the culture we built around our program and internship
program.
Thomas is currently working for a company called SADA as a Software Engineer.
“Take advantage of the network available as prior and current service members. There are untold amounts of communities, programs, and employers looking to hire and help
veterans.”
5. Deon Franklin
Deon Franklin is a LEARN alumni from our Echo 2021 cohort. He served in the Navy for eight years. He was always interested in tech and using the Gl Bill.
He attended LEARN after earning a bachelor’s degree in cyber security to learn more about software development.
As a Full Stack Developer, Deon is currently with Scientist.com, one of our company partners.
“Don’t be afraid to make the jump. The concepts are digestible, and the work is not only awesome and interesting but fulfilling when you put your mind to it and solve a problem.”
6. Charlean Baxter
On top of being one of our AMAZING instructors, Charlean Baxter is also a graduate of our Delta 2021 cohort. She served in the Navy for 14 years! With her fascination with
learning how things work, she knew computer science was the field for her.
After speaking with Kumba McGill and Sarah Proctor, two other outstanding employees of LEARN, she knew this Bootcamp would be the right choice. She loved the company so much that she was happy to come on as an instructor teaching the next LEARN graduates.
“Make sure to care of number one (yourself)! Breaks are great ways to help digest all the new concepts you will learn. Also, since you’re learning from home, use this time to go for a walk or spend it with family or friends.”
7. Francisco Rivera
Francisco Rivera is a LEARN alumni from our Charlie 2022 cohort. He served in the Marine Corps for four years. Coding interested him when he saw how critical thinking and problem-solving were at their core.
He chose to attend LEARN because of its ease of use through the VA as a partnered program.
Francisco is currently at Clearviction as a Software Engineer and loves the company culture!
“Find a mentor to whom you can relate, and make sure you have support from your family and friends.”