<![CDATA[JEAN LEE - Blog]]>Mon, 04 Aug 2025 21:55:06 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[Help underrepresented CS students prep for job searches]]>Fri, 10 Jul 2020 16:05:50 GMThttps://jeanlees.weebly.com/blog/help-underrepresented-cs-students-prep-for-job-searchesThis summer, I'll be helping students at CodePath.org with resume reviews and mock interviews. 

​What is CodePath.org?
CodePath.org is helping 750 diverse, computer science students prepare for technical interviews and secure jobs at top tech companies. We're hosting two events in August to assist students in preparing their technical resumes and practicing their interviewing skills. Can you volunteer time at one of the events below?

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https://codepath.org/

Resume Review Week (Aug. 10th-14th) helps students improve their resumes. Volunteers spend 10 minutes with each student who signs up to have their resume reviewed. Volunteers determine the numbers of hours they are available during the week. Then they meet with up to 4 students per hour, with 5 minutes breaks between each student. Sing up form.

Mock Interview Week (Aug. 24th-28th) helps our students to practice their technical interview skills with an experienced engineer and gain feedback for improvement. CodePath provides the interviewing platform and test questions. During Mock Interview Week volunteers will conduct a 45-minute technical mock interview with students. The interview will consist of 30-35 minutes for coding and 10-15 for feedback. Sing up form.
]]><![CDATA[You look like an engineer - Girls Advancing in STEM]]>Sat, 20 Jun 2020 16:17:35 GMThttps://jeanlees.weebly.com/blog/girls-advancing-in-stemI dressed up in a leather suit jacket and put on my heels to speak to girls visiting Facebook office to show that #ILookLikeAnEngineer. 

The Girls Advancing in STEM (GAINS) Initiative supports high school girls’ interest in STEM topics. ​​On April 3, 2017, I was invited to talk to about 50 high school girls that were visiting the Facebook HQ office.
On a panel with Delfina Eberly, Nivedita Chopra, Hema Budaraju, and myself, we talked about life at WhatsApp and Facebook as female engineers.
​Here is a photo of us ↓ 
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See @gainsinstem on Instagram.
I dressed up in a leather suit jacket and put on my heels. I also put on a red lipstick and make up. Why did I dress up like this? 
I wanted the girls to see that being an engineer doesn’t necessarily mean you have to forgo your feminine style. One of the participants for a GAINS T-shirt she got from last year, which is also awesome. One person wore a flowy summer dress. I hope the girls were able to see that there is no set ‘engineer look’. Anyone in any form or background can look like an engineer.

Everyone on the panel come from very different backgrounds and at various stages in their career. Delfina is a VP of Infrastructure at FB. I think she's one of the very few female leaders at FB. Hema, with 20+ years of experience in Technology is a Product Management Lead, who talked about her support for her children studying STEM. Nevedita shared her experience of working at FB as a recent college graduate. 
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Speaker profiles posted on Greenwich Academy.
After the event, the Director of Duff Center for the STEM Initiatives wrote to the hosts of the panel: 
“I think you changed some lives yesterday. Their eyes were opened to the true potential of working in a STEM field.”
Connie Chang, Member Engagement Lead, Women@ Facebook, who hosting the event at FB wrote to me,
"Thank you for taking the time to be a panelist for the GAINS conference! Your powerful story inspired so many of the young women. We’re lucky to have you as a woman leader here at WhatsApp &FB!"
​​Learn more about GAINS.
]]><![CDATA[Girls Who Code]]>Sat, 20 Jun 2020 16:03:28 GMThttps://jeanlees.weebly.com/blog/girls-who-codeGWC is a nonprofit organization on a mission to close the gender gap in technology and to change the image of what a programmer looks likes and does. We’re building the largest pipeline of the future female engineers in the United States.
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GWC Summer Immersion Program provides girls (ages 15-18) with opportunities to learn about life at Facebook/WhatsApp, while exposing them to role models in the tech field. Girls will engage in coding workshops, mentoring opportunities, field trips, and speaker sessions. Each week of the program covers projects related to computer science, such as art, storytelling, robotics, video games, web sites, and apps. After seven weeks of hard work, students will have the opportunity to showcase their final projects at a culminating graduation event that includes pitches, a graduation ceremony, and a science fair-style demo session. Students leave the program with a unique perspective on careers in technology and with the support of the GWC community to pursue Computer Science in college. 
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As the Facebook committee lead, I hosted the GWC Summer Immersion Program at Facebook HQ in California in summer 2017 and 2018. In addition to her normal duties at WhatsApp, I volunteered about 5 hours/week to lead a team of five Software Engineers and Analysts at Facebook to manage day to day program needs. I led the committee to organize events, such as the mentorship program, speaker’s series, workshops, Meet & Greet with parents, and the graduation. I was proud to serve as a role model and an inspiration for all women working in technology and pursuing their studies in technology.

We have received positive feedback from our attendees. Following are some of the feedback on having a direct access to Facebook through the program:
“What made this event great was the opportunity to connect and get to know the recruiters.”
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“Super energetic, really helped me build my resume to the best it could be!"
 Mana Nakagawa, Diversity Strategic Operations Manager at Facebook wrote:
“GWC Summer Immersion Program is one of our key company initiatives to increase the pipeline of girls in Computer Science and Engineering. Jean is the main lead for the Program Committee, which provided exceptional young girls with the exposure to CS content and opportunity to be mentored by our internal employees. It also enables our internal female software engineers to mentor, practice their leadership and influence, and give back to the community, which we repeatedly hear is important to women’s sense of fulfillment and pride. The Girls Who Code program is also a unique example of how Facebook Inc. partners with the external community to build a longer pipeline of girls in tech, and Jean plays a key leadership role in helping us brand ourselves externally as a company that is committed to these issues.” ​
Learn more about Girls Who Code.
]]><![CDATA[Lead with Courage]]>Sat, 20 Jun 2020 15:48:18 GMThttps://jeanlees.weebly.com/blog/women-leadership-dayI had the amazing honor of taking part in Facebook's 2017 Women@Leadership Day, an empowering event for women everywhere. The theme of the year was “a time to be inspired, network with like-minded professionals, and learn applicable skills to become resilient, effective leaders.” 
With Arianna Huffington and Sheryl Sandberg headlining the proceedings, I joined a star-studded lineup to share my thoughts on courage - especially as it relates to being a female engineer working in Silicon Valley. It truly was an awe-inspiring day full of learning opportunities with other like-minded professionals who are striving toward greater success!
I'm thrilled to have been a part of this incredible experience - where we joined together in learning, connection, and empowerment. It's time for women in tech to take the world by storm!
* Photos from the FNTech article.
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