Dear US-RSE members and allies,

I’m honored and thrilled to be appointed the inaugural Executive Director of US-RSE. My whole work life has been immersed around software with me starting already at high-school with programming. I enjoyed working in industry as an administrator, system developer and head of a systems programming group for over a decade and then I switched from industry to research completing my PhD in a bioinformatics group. I have been an RSE, research faculty and senior research scientist with a major focus on research software in the last 17 years. This moment is very special to me because it is about a community I’m incredibly passionate about, and this community feels like home. Being a part of it means having a space for discussions, a space for learning and support of a non-traditional career path. With my resume, I often felt like a unicorn – not within US-RSE though.

Pride month has always been both a fight and a celebration for the LGBTQ+ community, and for me that continues to ring true as my own rights - as a trans man - are threatened across this nation in 2023. ¹ The very first Pride march was held in honor of the Stonewall Uprising of 1969, a moment where the people of our community chose to stand up for themselves and refuse to be silenced, erased, or persecuted any more. ² It was not the first time LGBTQ+ people had to make that choice, nor will today be the last day. And the annual celebration of Pride that we engage in each June honors that choice to continue to exist, and dare to thrive, in the face of adversity.

US-RSE’s DEI working group (DEI-WG) is proud to help US-RSE celebrate and participate in Pride Month. Each week during Pride Month, the US-RSE will spotlight a member of the LGBTQIA+ community who has been involved in computing, science, engineering, and/or math, and have inspired our members through their accomplishments in their careers and their personal stories.

US-RSE’s DEI working group (DEI-WG) is proud to help US-RSE celebrate and participate in Pride Month. Each week during Pride Month, the US-RSE will spotlight a member of the LGBTQIA+ community who has been involved in computing, science, engineering, and/or math, and have inspired our members through their accomplishments in their careers and their personal stories.

US-RSE’s DEI working group (DEI-WG) is proud to help US-RSE celebrate and participate in Pride Month. Each week during Pride Month, the US-RSE will spotlight a member of the LGBTQIA+ community who has been involved in computing, science, engineering, and/or math, and have inspired our members through their accomplishments in their careers and their personal stories.