Why I'm Studying at MATC

I remember being up in the middle of the night a while back, and couldn't sleep. It had been one of those nights that I'd been up thinking too much. I was about two years into running my own business, which was quietly failing, and felt like there weren't many options to help fix it.

Within those moments, I found myself on one of those "drag & drop" website builder sites & figured I'd try to revamp my business with an online presence. After spending about a day to put together, and a month of trying to make it perfect, I realized that not only was I more focused on the "aesthetics" of my website, but that I loved being a part of the web design process. 

It felt natural.  The work didn't feel like work. Eventually, I started several other online businesses (on the side of my day job), and the most fulfilling parts about them were designing the websites. However, at the time (as embarrassing as it is), I really only knew how to "drag & drop". It wasn't until I started drop-shipping on Shopify were I was exposed to HTML.  I wanted my shops to be unique instead of being confined to the cookie cutter themes that every other web design novice was using. Because of that, I started reading the community forums, and I learned simple things such as tweaking a footer, or resizing images. 

Once I was hired on at my current employer, I decided to utilize the tuition reimbursement program to pursue Web Development professionally through a formal education. I learned that Milwaukee Area Technical College had a very immersive IT curriculum and would provide me the opportunity to study while also working full-time. 

Because of that, I'm at MATC to build my dreams in Web Development to someday become a Front-End Web Developer or UI Designer. I'm currently in my 2nd semester and have learned so much. I can't believe that I actually know how to really build & style a website instead of just dragging & dropping. 

Right now, I am building a portfolio and professional persona to better showcase my talents & design style while studying Software Development as well to become more marketable within a very competitive job market. I'm sure the journey will be challenging, but so very worth it.



Thanks for Reading,

Shanell A. Spann


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