PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS | Informatics
AIMING SKY HIGH Shannon Gatta, a data engineer at Blue Origin, has big dreams for herself — and for helping others rise, too
Photo by Doug Parry
By Jessi Loerch Shannon Gatta’s work is out of this world. Gatta, who graduated from the iSchool in 2020 with a degree in Informatics, works as a data engineer for the private aerospace company Blue Origin, has completed the first level of private astronaut training, and has interned at NASA. She’s not content with fulfilling her own dreams; she’s using her talents to help other people — particularly those from marginalized groups — shoot for the stars as well. Gatta first found a passion for space while at Seattle Central College. She had moved to Seattle after serving with the Army National Guard in Afghanistan, with a goal of transferring to the University of Washington. At Seattle Central, she joined a rocketry club, which started her on a path she’d never expected.
“For me, it was a lot of large-scale topics I’d never really imagined,” she said. “It helped me align with what my goals were going to be.” While studying at Seattle Central, Gatta found opportunities to get involved in aerospace research at the UW. She learned about Informatics and the iSchool, which sounded like the right fit for her. After she started at the iSchool, she took a data science class and liked it immediately. “I loved that the class wasn’t just about the technology, it was about the responsibility that comes with knowing the data, and how you manipulate it and the power and accountability that comes along with the insight you provide,” she said. Gatta was selected as a candidate for Out Astronaut in 2019 and completed the first phase of training. She’s still part of that
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Alumni spotlight: Jamie Prins, Informatics, 2005 NOW: SENIOR PRODUCT LEAD, AMAZON “I recently led the launch of Alexa’s first masculine-sounding voice and newest wake word, “Ziggy” (while parenting two kids at home during the pandemic) . To try the new voice, say, “Alexa, change your voice .” As part of the Alexa Personality team, I advocate for strong design and UX research to ensure we are meeting the needs of our customers and being thoughtful about the role of personified AI in society . My Informatics background and the program’s focus on human-centered design has served me well at Amazon .”
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