Athena Hernandez
¡Hola, Mundo! I'm Athena, a Mexican-American girl from San Diego, California. I'm part of
Stanford University's class of 2027 and I love to
learn anything related to computer science. I also love to figure skate, read, and eat Mexican food. I
adore my two chihuahuas: Finito and
CeeLo—yeah, like the rapper.
Feel free to email me at athenahernandezc gmail com or reach out on the social media platforms linked at
the bottom. Keep scrolling to learn more about me!
Computer Science Portfolio @ GitHub Apr 2019—Present
I'm familiar with different languages including Python, Java, JavaScript, Swift, C++, HTML, and CSS. I am also familiar with programs and softwares including TensorFlow, OpenCV, scikit-learn, Django, Bootstrap5, Processing, Matplotlib, pandas, Jupyter Notebooks, The Update Framework, and in-toto. I'm currently exploring Natural Language Processing and I hope to learn more about machine learning in college. Browsing my public repositories on GitHub can help you get a better idea of the projects I've done with these languages and softwares.
Panel Speaker @ NCWIT Jun 2022—Present
I talk about about my own educational journey and about my experience applying for and with the Aspirations in Computing award.
CSTA Presentation Speaker @ TECHNOLOchicas May 2022—Present
Preparing a presentation for the National Computer Science Teacher's Association (CSTA) Conference on the importance of inclusivity and Spanish-language resources for high school computer science classes.
Founder & Tutor @ Codificar con Coco Mar 2020—Present
Teaching computer science classes weekly, specifically Python and Scratch, in Spanish to elementary students in Tijuana, Mexico.
Author & Illustrator @ Cómo Codificar para Niñ@s Feb 2021—Oct 2022
As an introductory manual for Python, this book teaches young Spanish-speaking students how to navigate the world of technology by learning their first coding language. This 178-page book covers the following principles: text editors, math basics, data types, conditional statements, loops, functions and modules, classes and objects, graphics, and more.
Cybersecurity Researcher @ New York University Jul 2022—Aug 2022
Researched "Software Supply Chain Improvements to TUF" at the Secure Systems Lab under Justin Cappos, Lukas Pühringer, and Aditya Sirish on The Winston Foundation's scholarship as part of the NYU GSTEM program.
Head Ambassasdor, Intern, & TA @ League of Amazing Programmers Mar 2020—Aug 2021
I assisted with Java app development classes as a TA to reciprocate the knowledge I gained from studying at the League. I also interned under a few of the teachers over the summer of 2020. Later, through 2021, I became a head ambassador and helped with programming events to enrich students' experiences.
HSEP Student @ UC Berkeley Sep 2020—Nov 2020
Participated in the Society of Women Engineers (SWE)'s fall High School Engineering Program (HSEP) at UC Berkeley. Used CAD to create the final project, a handicap-accessible 3D playground.
Richard and Margaret Pharr Award @ The Bishop's School Jun 2023
Established in 1966, this award is given during graduation by the faculty to a student who embodies the virtues of perseverance, dependability, and concern for others.
Certificate of Recognition @ California Legislature Assembly May 2023
Selected for recognition by the California Legislature Assembly, specifically Assemblymember Tasha Boerner from District 77, as one of the 2023 Coca-Cola Scholars.
National Technology Youth Awardee @ Hispanic Heritage Foundation Apr 2023
Selected as the top recipient of all 30,000+ applicants due to my achievements in technology-related activities. Qualified from receiving the gold regional award — top applicant in the California and Nevada region. Received a full-expenses-paid trip to Atlanta, Georgia to meet the nine other national winners.
Coca-Cola Scholar @ Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation Mar 2023
Top 150 of 91,000+ applicants selected based on academics, leadership, and community commitment. Recieved scholarship of $20,000 and an all-expenses-paid trip to Atlanta, Georgia for Scholars Weekend.
Certificate of Recognition @ San Diego County Engineering Council Mar 2023
Selected for local recognition by the San Diego Country Engineering Council, specifically President Debra Kimberling, as one of the 2022 National Winners of the NCWIT Aspirations in Computing award.
Gold Key @ Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Jan 2023
Received Gold Key, top 5% of submissions, in the category "Personal Essay & Memoir" for my piece titled "Becoming a Masterful Funambulista." Gold Key entries are automatically considered for national awards.
National Hispanic Recognition Program @ College Board Jan 2023
Identifies outstanding Hispanic high school students and shares information about these academically well-prepared students with subscribing colleges and universities.
News Coverage @ Local Outlets Jan 2023
My work in bridging the gender and racial gap in computer science was covered in articles by the San Diego Union-Tribune and the La Jolla Light.
Winston Data Scholarship @ New York University Jul 2022
A merit-based, competitive opportunity open to any student interested in learning more about data science. Recipients are required to perform a small, data-science project to complement their regularly assigned summer research project. Full tuition of GSTEM research program along with additional data science class awarded through Winston Data Scholarship.
State Championship Qualifier @ California's High School Speech Association Mar 2022
Participated in Oratorical Interpretation (OI) finals with speech about addiction in San Diego's state qualifiers through the San Diego Imperial Valley Speech League.
Aspirations in Computing National Winner @ NCWIT Feb 2022
Top 40 of 3,700+ applicants (top 1%). Award recipients are selected based on their aptitude and aspirations in technology and computing, as demonstrated by their computing experience, computing-related activities, leadership experience, tenacity in the face of barriers to access, and plans for post-secondary education.
National Youth Cyber Defense Competition @ Air Force Association Feb 2022
Received California Gold Tier with teammates through local competitions at high school.
Gold President's Volunteer Service Award @ AmeriCorps 2021—2022
Awarded to high school students who dedicated 250+ hours to service.
Gold National Latin Exam Award @ American Classical League 2018—2020
Received the Gold, or summa cum laude, recognition on three exams: Advanced Latin Prose Exam, Intermediate Latin Exam, and Beginning Latin Exam (2018).
National Figure Skating Tests @ United States Figure Skating 2016—2022
Passed multiple figure skating exams to compete at the Open Juvenile level: Junior Moves in the Field, Juvenile Freeskate, Novice Moves in the Field, Intermediate Moves in the Field, Prejuvenile Freeskate, Juvenile Moves in the Field, Prejuvenile Moves in the Field, Preliminary Freeskate, Pre-Preliminary Freeskate, Preliminary Moves in the Field, and Pre-Preliminary Moves in the Field.
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