Volunteer Spotlight: Melissa Niiya

Why do you volunteer for PDXWIT?
After switching industries and starting a new role in tech, I found community in PDXWIT. I volunteer to help sustain and grow this community of awesome humans, to connect with other rad nerds around racial equity, and to occasionally use my data powers for good.

What is your day job or another passion of yours (besides PDXWIT)?
I'm an analyst at Portland startup Puppet, where I slice up data and weave it back together to tell a story about the business.

What has been your favorite PDXWIT project, initiative or event you have participated in as a volunteer? Why?
I love supporting the PDXWIT #InvestingInYou Scholarship Program through analytics! In addition to getting to work with an amazing team of volunteers, it's so rewarding to be able to help folks access professional development opportunities through this program.

What is something people may not know about you?
My undergrad degree is in screenwriting (it made sense at the time).