Silvana Precup is another inspiring personality we invited to our Lift Your Spirit interview series. This young lady is the new driving force behind Rails Girls Brussels, an organization focussed on getting more women in touch with coding. The new lead organizer welcomes us with a smiling face – ready to talk about the project, career and coffee.
Rails Girls Brussels is taking a place on 19th-20th of February 2016 at Betacowork Brussels. To inspire the participants and make the Saturday morning more productive Apex is sponsoring the event with a delicious coffee!
Meet Silvana Precup. Silvana originally comes from Romania. She lived and studied in Bulgaria, the US and France. Currently Silvana is living in Brussels and is strongly contributing to the education and women’s involvement in coding and programming.
Rails Girls Brussels
What is the idea of this project?
Rails Girls is a global movement aiming to get more girls and women in technology. Currently, science, technology, engineering and math sectors are rather male dominated. Rails Girls is an event – entirely supported by volunteers – that introduces beginners to backend programing: to how software actually gets built.
How did you get involved into Rails Girls Brussels?
I come from a social sciences background, but in my thesis, I did touch upon the subject of tech, specifically that of smart cities. I also completed a coding boot camp last summer, so I am still learning and want to improve my skills. The way I found out about Rails Girls was through my coach. She is the one who started Rails Girls Brussels. So it is actually the first time I am organizing it after taking over from her.
How do you attract and inspire people to come?
The thing is that it is not so much of the work because it is very network based. Plus, there is interest in the topic of coding. So friends of friends are communicating about us, the previous participants give recommendations, people like our social media pages and get to know more about Rails Girls.
What is special about this project?
People know it is for beginners and it is a good way to start learning how to code together with a coach and community. The knowledge you can get from someone who codes for a living, who is willing to teach you and who has patience – it’s a unique opportunity. Moreover, participation is free!
Let’s Talk About Coffee
What is coffee’s role in your life?
Oh, I love coffee, I adore coffee! Yes yes yes! I used to work as a barista when I was a student. I also remember when I tried real espresso for the first time. I just had one shot and it gave me so much energy that I could not stop jumping up and down and running around in circles!
Does coffee mean energy, or a moment of pleasure to you?
I think it is both – and I just like the smell of coffee in the morning. It is one of the things that I definitely take time to enjoy, even when I am very busy. It is definitely an addiction but it is a good addiction. I like it and that is something I am not going to give up soon.
I think that good coffee or bad coffee can either make or break your day
Is coffee important for the Rails Girls Brussels event?
Good coffee is definitely going to make a difference on Saturday – when you have to be there and learn new things at 9 in the morning. Good coffee will make it better! And that is one of the reasons why I got in contact with Apex – and not a catering company. I know that what we get will be the best coffee. Women can be very critical and with you guys I am sure participants will love it.
Rails Girls event in Brussels will take place at Betacowork on 19th and 20th of February. For more information visit Rails Girls Brussels’ facebook page or visit their webpage.
Questions?
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