Meet Shrika

Shrika is in 11th grade and lives in Austin, Texas. Shrika combines her passion for art, engineering and innovation in her aspirations to build a more equitable world. 

“My identity includes a lot of things, including my passions, which would be engineering innovation in accessibility. 

One of my dreams is to be an engineer and innovate for a more equitable future. And I think I definitely want that for my community and just a place where everyone can thrive and everyone has the ability to have these opportunities where they can find the best place for them. That needs to be done through every kind of aspect of society right now.”

Shirka was introduced to engineering in elementary school and continued on to join engineering competitions. 

“I had a lot of different engineering experiences throughout elementary and middle school. Elementary school was the first time that I was introduced to engineering. I just found it so interesting and new. In middle school, I participated in an engineering competition and that was the first time I saw that you could be creative while also being in STEM.”

Shrika also realized that engineering could help her fulfill her dream to improve the world around her. 

“A few summers ago, I participated in an innovation technology camp, which was really cool because it was innovating for difference. It was right when COVID had started and we were innovating solutions to COVID. We learned about how you can use the engineering process to create new solutions and think about aspects that haven't been really touched. We did it in a way that could be quantified, which was really interesting.” 

Shrika credits her family for their support and encouragement to keep learning and growing. 

“My parents and my sister have been super supportive and helpful. This isn't a field that they are used to, and but still they're very supportive and just told me to put myself out there.”

Shrika also thanks mentors she has come into contact with over the years for her persistence and interest in engineering. 

“I've had a bunch of different mentors in the industry through programs like Built By Girls. That has been really helpful because I've learned about different women and their experiences. They've taught me what they've learned from the years that they've been in industry.” 

Shrika shares her advice with adults to support more young women get excited about STEM.

“I definitely tell adults to support of the young people in their life, regardless of how much exposure they have something because there are so many emerging fields and so many new things that we can do with technology. It's important to be supportive and encourage people to put themselves out there.” 

Shrika shares first hand how STEM helped her gain the courage to put herself out there. She shares how her experiences have changed her. 

“They've definitely changed me. They have helped me realize how much I'm capable of and taught me so many different skills, as well as learning how I can navigate through new experiences.” 

Shrika shares an example of how a coding camp helped Shrika overcome her shyness. 

“I remember I did a coding camp and it was really great because I got to learn about new coding languages (to build a website). That was the first time that I was exposed to computer science, and it was really exciting for me to be able to create my own website on mental health, which is something that I'm very interested in. We were taught to do a presentation. I've been very shy throughout middle school and that was definitely a new experience as well - presenting in front of so many people. I've had so many experiences similar to that, which have helped me hone multiple skills, not just the technical skills or presentation skills, but both of them together, which I think is very important.” 

STEM camps and engineering competitions helped Shrika build a community. 

“I've met so many of my friends through these different experiences and they all have very similar experiences to me. Having that community and having people who know what you're going through and can help you overcome those things help.”