Deloris Thompson

I came to PPL for HTML and CSS classes and I found that being a developer was the right path for me! I am a Liberian immigrant, wife and mother of two who was working part-time when my mother-in-law was taking an Excel class and loved it. The moment Don told her about the HTML/CSS class, she thought of me. It has opened doors I never expected.

Don encouraged me to push myself, he saw something in me that I never knew existed. I constantly questioned why during class and not once did he discourage me to stop. When he suggested for me to get into Tech Force and take more classes I figured there was no way a female in her thirties would break into a tech career when it’s not only male-dominated but also full of new college grads. Tech Force allowed me to attend Launch Academy a very intense tech boot camp that requires over 40 hours from their students not attending the online classes. Every time I emailed Don for suggestions on what to do he always pushed me to try. Not only did I graduate earlier than expected but I managed to do it while still hitting the over 40 hours a week, taking care of my family, and working part-time. This time last year I was working 15 hours a week making minimum wage trying to figure out how to fix that and now I’m working full-time in a career that feels like the best dream, and helping to provide for my family.

I am so grateful to Don and the PPL for starting me down this fantastic new journey in my life. Thank you so much, Don, for helping me start this new chapter in my life. Words cannot express how meeting you has changed almost everything.

I am currently a Software Engineer at Echobind and getting my Bachelor’s in Computer Science. If it wasn’t for the program at the Library, I never would’ve have found my dream career. Please let me know if there is any way I can give back, even if it is to talk to students about my job, engineering and getting started.

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