Two dozen students from Seaford High School explored Google’s New York City headquarters and heard firsthand from four Seaford alumni now working for the tech giant.
Students from the Introduction to Programming and Advanced Placement Computer Science courses learned about careers in technology while seeing a dynamic work environment. They connected with software engineers and professional programmers to better understand the skills needed in the field.
“Google is very recognizable to current high school students,” Seaford High School computer science teacher Lauren Thompsen said. “I think it was beneficial to them because there is a very wide field of career possibilities.”
This was the second year Seaford students have been invited to Google. Thompsen said last year’s visit was very motivational for students because it gave participants real-world insight into the world of computer science.
“What you learn from computer science is interdisciplinary,” Ms. Thompsen said. “It
applies to everything. It’s math, science, logic, planning, organization, thinking things
and trying to figure out where a problem is and fixing it.”
Students learned from four Seaford alumni about their day-to-day as Google employees, how they use coding in their jobs and the importance of collaboration in the field. Senior Chedesh Shamnarine noted that the presentation also centered around artificial intelligence, including how it is developed and its risks. “They really made us think about what computer science is,” Chedesh added.
“It was very helpful,” senior Ali Faruqui said, “it highlighted how computer science can solve issues and make the world a better place.” Senior Denys Zagrebin had high praise for Google’s headquarters, praising the artwork around the building–with a different theme for each floor. The headquarters also had scooters to help people get around the block-long building faster.
Seaford’s computer science program was developed in 2001 and has evolved as new technologies have emerged. Fellow senior Andrew Nguyen praised the collaboration of those at Google–and in the field of computer science.
“I didn’t realize how in-depth computer science is in terms of how you have to work with each other and cooperate with each other,” Nguyen said, adding that he was impressed by how much the software engineers work together on a project, and give feedback. He also expressed his own confidence in his–and his peers’–abilities. “I thought that was very interesting,” he said, “if they can do it, we can do it.”
