Women of Multiverse - Erica Newman
(4 min read)
Written by Erica Newman, currently completing the SWE apprenticeship working as a cloud engineer at Verizon in the US.
At this point in my life, I see myself as a trailblazer. I’ve put on a new set of lenses and opened myself up to trying and taking on new adventures that are challenging yet personally rewarding. I am doing it for me! Not to climb a corporate ladder, nor to show off how great I am or what I can do, but, just to say I have embarked on this journey because It is something I am truly passionate about while feeding my thirst for knowledge and having a blast along the way. After a 25 year career as an accountant in the oil and gas industry, and of course, being impacted by a layoff due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, I decided I need a change. For years, I have always wanted to pursue a career in the tech field but didn’t have the courage to take that big leap. Well, the COVID Pandemic paved the way. After viewing a news broadcast of the collaboration of Generation and Verizon to upskill and train nontraditional people in tech skills while opening doors to new opportunities, I took that leap, completed the boot camp and was accepted into the Verizon Thrive Apprenticeship-Software Engineering path. I must say, this has been a dream come true. Although challenging, I pinch myself to make sure this is not a dream. I am enjoying every minute of being trained by Multiverse, learning to code using Javascript and SQL, Test Driven Development skills, and employing the Agile framework of project management while building and developing my skills in AWS and on track to gaining my AWS Certified Solution Architect certification. As well, I am excited about the opportunity to truly contribute to Verizon by developing and leading a Business Case while also building AWS Architect Solutions in AWS for clients.
I am proud to be a woman and am proud of other women because we are LIFE! ..we are CREATORS!… we are STRONG!… we are LEADERS!… we are PASSIONATE!…we are CARING!… we are DYNAMIC!… WE ARE!
This year's theme of international women's day - #Breakthebias’, to me, means to stop the perpetual cycle of years of stagnation of women by societal boundaries placed in our path to hold us back like pay inequality, inequitable access to career opportunities, being seen as a mom with kids, or being considered emotional or aggressive when stepping up to the plate to lead or taking charge without asking for forgiveness or permission. Don’t get me wrong, for many of us, we break through, go over, go around, and even climb that ladder through strength, courage, and fortitude to get where we want to go. But ask yourself, why should these barriers continue to be in our way?
Pay inequality is something that I have personally experienced and have seen experienced by women throughout my career. I am a strong advocate for equal pay for equal work.
We as women and our allies can work together to change the narrative of pay inequality by advocating for equitable pay for women which means life for families and children. Considering women make up 51.1% of the population and are in most cases the main caregivers for children, the impact that equal pay could have on our society would be astronomical in improving the welfare, health, and educational advancement of our children. Advocacy for pay equity must be addressed on a national, state, and on a local community level, from the President, state legislators, and local businesses. We as valued assets in our companies must work to help corporate leadership see that the value in equal pay for women means life for our families and children.