Meet Zara I. (she/her), a New Face of Tech winner who is pursuing a degree in animation at Collin College.

What is your dream?

My dream is to work as an animator on children’s movies for Disney or Netflix — so I can inspire children in the same way my childhood movies inspired me.

I want to inspire girls everywhere to pursue their dreams in tech and to know that it is possible for them to achieve their dreams. I hope to complete my education and step into professional life and climb up the ladder to success. Most of all, I just want to impact the children of today, so they know no dream of theirs is too big.

Please share how you feel about the win and what impact it will have on your career.

I feel eternally grateful that I was chosen as a winner for this scholarship. It will have a big impact on helping me become successful in my career because I will be able to pay for my tuition using the scholarship money.

What advice do you have for other women reaching for their dreams?

The advice I would give to women would be to never stop trying — we once didn’t even have the right to vote and look at where we are today. There are many barriers in the path of women trying to achieve success — more than there should be. However, together, eventually we will remove those barriers, as well.