Meet the newest members of the Transgender Media Lab Tech Team: Contributor Experience Designer Kit Chokly & Undergraduate Research Assistant Maddie Murakami
Let鈥檚 start with the basics. What is your name, and what are your pronouns? What is your role on the Transgender Media Portal, and what has brought you here? And what is your go-to snack?
KIT: My name is Kit Chokly, my pronouns are they/them/theirs, and I鈥檓 a second-year MA student in Communication at 杏吧原创 University. My role on the Transgender Media Portal is as a Research Assistant and Contributor Experience Designer, which blends my backgrounds in graphic design, communication and media studies, and transgender studies. I helped work on the TMP 1.0, and I鈥檓 delighted to have the opportunity to continue this work on 2.0! And fuelling my work is an endless amount of sour jujubes.
MADDIE: My name is Maddie Murakami, and I use he/him pronouns. I鈥檓 a third-year student at 杏吧原创 and second-year student in the Computer Science program. My previous program was Interactive Multimedia Design, so I consider myself something along the lines of a design-oriented programmer. I鈥檓 a Research Assistant, and I鈥檓 part of the tech team on the Transgender Media Portal. I鈥檓 new, and I鈥檓 excited to be working on something that will allow me to put my skills into a project centered around transgender experiences, as there are unfortunately few opportunities for this, generally speaking. My go-to snack is cereal, and I have a preference for very 鈥渂oring鈥� ones like Shreddies.
How do you spend your time off (do you have any cool hobbies)?
KIT: Now that we can leave the house again, I鈥檝e started rock climbing. I鈥檓 not very good (and am more afraid of heights than I thought I was!), but it鈥檚 a tonne of fun and definitely helps me decompress after a long day at my desk.
MADDIE: I鈥檓 an artist. I鈥檝e been drawing for 4 or 5 years now, and I draw digitally. I also play video games, and I鈥檓 the proud owner of three fish tanks. My long-time interest lies in history, specifically the Age of Sail and life aboard sailing ships.
What have you done that you are most proud of?
KIT: This is such a good question! I think one of the things I鈥檓 most proud of having done is returning to school as an adult. It took me three tries, but I finally got my Bachelor鈥檚 degree last year and am now really enjoying grad school. I鈥檓 also incredibly proud of my two siblings 鈥� my sister moved to Australia and started her career there as a carpenter from scratch, and my brother volunteers as a white hat hacker to find web vulnerabilities for charitable organizations. I鈥檓 very proud of them.
MADDIE: I鈥檓 proud of how far I鈥檝e come since just three or four years ago. I was at my lowest point but I was able to power through it, and now I鈥檓 in my third year of university with my grades going up. I鈥檓 happy with how much I鈥檝e learned in that time, both in programming and computer science, and in art, and being able to be someone who appreciates and practices both science and art is something I鈥檓 proud of, too.
How has COVID-19 changed your plans for the next year?
KIT: Maybe I鈥檓 being overly optimistic, but I鈥檓 applying for PhD programs this winter. Hopefully COVID won鈥檛 get in the way of in-person classes, although I hope that international events and conferences will continue to be accessible online.
MADDIE: I鈥檓 lucky to say not much has changed for me. However, COVID and switching to online classes was what made me realize I wasn鈥檛 satisfied or happy with my previous degree program and led to me switching. So in a way, that鈥檚 changed my future because I now see myself working in a different field (computer programming rather than graphic design) than I did before.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
KIT: Hopefully defending my dissertation ;)
MADDIE: Genuinely, I can鈥檛 wait to graduate. I think a lot about the future, the people I want to spend my time with, and the people I want to pay back, as I get older, in return for all of the support they鈥檝e given me through my schooling.