A KSU student working on a server cluster in the Office of Information Technology.As a female majoring in Applied Information Technology, Krystyna Fisher is venturing into a highly specialized, competitive and male-dominated career that requires outstanding preparation and training. She is getting that preparation at 厙ぴ勛圖 through her classwork, but also through her participation in KSUs Green-to-Gold program, which is allowing her to gain hands-on experience while financially supporting her college expenses.

KSUs softball coaches became aware of Krystyna while she was playing for Contra Costa Community College in California, and KSU subsequently offered her a partial athletic scholarship. So while its her love of softball that brought her to KSU, its the love she has developed for KSU that keeps her here.

I really like that KSU is so small, its not overwhelming, she said. And I love my softball team. They made the transition really easy. We always have great time when were together.

Krystyna notes that Kentucky is quite different from California. A change of scenery is nice. I enjoy it here. It wasnt hard at all to get adapted. The fact that her three older brothers all went away to school made it easier for her to follow their lead. My family is very supportive, she notes. I felt like I had to go away, and Im glad I came here.

Her Green-to-Gold work experience in the Office of Information Technology is giving her real-world experience in her major, as she works with the network manager to identify, troubleshoot and maintain the universitys information technology system.

Im really enjoying working with our network manager, and I am learning a lot, she added.

Krystyna plans to be at KSU one more academic year, to finish her degree in 2015. Then its back to California, she says. Im looking to get into a job there, and there are a lot more work opportunities in technology back home.

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