By: Shelby Hobbs
Friday, September 11, 2015

With a wide array of interests and talents, soon-to-be graduate of Florida State University Lauren Gerhardstein makes an excellent addition to the Florida IT Career Alliance team. She is a determined, well-rounded student that enjoys being involved in the classroom, workforce, and across campus. Lauren is graduating Fall 2015 with a Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology with a minor in Communication. She is also pursuing a Health Information Technology Certificate because of her interest in the medical field. Lauren’s combined skills in the tech field and her exceptional communication skills make her a perfect candidate for a wide range of employment opportunities. She has completed five different internships over the course of her undergraduate career. Her internships have exposed her to a variety of IT-related positions including project management with Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare and web design and application development with CareerSource Palm Beach County. On campus, Lauren shows off her leadership skills by volunteering for various positions within her sorority, Gamma Phi Beta, and Dance Marathon FSU. With Dance Marathon FSU, Lauren helps raise funds for Children’s Miracle Network, Shands Children’s Hospital, and the FSU College of Medicine.

In February 2015, Lauren joined FITC as a Student Ambassador to help other students learn about the many opportunities available in STEM related fields. Her excitement is obvious when discussing the exponential growth of opportunities available to students in technology-related majors. “I feel like technology as a field is so exciting and growing so quickly. I wish I had more guidance when I was younger to realize the opportunities available in this field.”

Lauren has a passion to help inspire more women to follow in her footsteps and enroll in a STEM major. She elaborated on why the field is so exciting by pointing out that with a STEM degree, “the possibilities are endless!” With FITC Lauren has been able to share her love of technology with younger students and inspire them to consider pursuing a degree in a related field. Her favorite experience was working a scavenger hunt with students from Mandarin Middle School. Lauren explained how the event exposed students to new ideas that sparked their interest in technology. “It was really cool to see them go from knowing nothing about STEM, to having all of these ideas and questions about everything from websites and game design to drones.”

Lauren is a bright student, a passionate Student Ambassador, and a stellar example of the exciting potential that can be found in tomorrow’s technology workforce. Her plans after graduation are still in the works, but her curiosity and interest in a variety of paths suggest she will be successful wherever she goes. As for now, she added “I am so excited to be able to help out more this semester!”

To learn more about Lauren, connect with her on LinkedIn or follow her on Twitter.

FITC Student Ambassadors make up a team of dedicated and knowledgeable students both at FSU and FAMU. These students travel across the Florida Panhandle to promote information technology, computer science, and computer engineering to high schools. Ambassadors are responsible for activities such as running coding camps, assisting in technology clubs, or hosting college tours. For more information on FITC Ambassadors, visit the Ambassador page.

The Florida IT Career Alliance is an initiative funded by the Florida Board of Governors which aims to recruit, retain, and employ Florida's next generation technology workforce. FITC promotes information technology, computer science, and computer engineering to local high schools and college students across Florida. Connect with FITC on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.