CAC: How did participating in the Congressional App Challenge contribute to your personal journey, career path, and accomplishments so far?

SD: Participating in the Congressional App Challenge was the first time in my career that I was able to bring a product to life— from an idea to a fully functional mobile app. Through this experience, I got my first glimpse of product design, development, and UI/UX.

CAC: Try to remember back to competing in the CAC – what was your app about and why did you create it?

SD: My app was called SafeSpace, and the goal was to provide mental health resources within two clicks. It provided accredited resources like mental health hotlines/text-lines and allows the end user to pick their preferred method of help. The ultimate goal was to provide immediate resources to those in a crisis, in the way that they preferred.

CAC: What are you most proud of in your academic or professional career thus far?

SD: I am definitely most proud of my work at Workshop. From starting as an analyst in 2023, I have built many of Workshop’s financial and operational processes from the ground up, leading me to the Chief of Staff role I sit in now. Since joining at about 35 employees, we have since grown to over 100.

CAC: Let’s look into the future – where do you hope to be in 2035?

SD: I hope that I can continue to drive growth and efficiency for Workshop here in the heart of the Midwest in 2025 and beyond!

CAC: What excites you most about the future of technology and innovation?

SD: I am a Finance nerd, so I think the application of AI, Machine Learning, and Data Science in Finance is really starting to come to fruition. Not only are there more tools available to build efficient finance teams, but adoption of new technology seems to have more momentum than ever.