Meet Alagappan Sellappan- Director of Engineering/Development at the CVT
Alagappan Sellappan lives in the Greater Richmond Region of Virginia as a rising senior at Henrico High School, where he is on track to graduate from the International Baccalaureate Program. Sellappan has been a member of the Coronavirus Visualization Team for eight months, and he currently fulfills his role as the Director of Engineering and Development.
As part of his executive responsibilities, Sellappan manages the CVT GitHub workspace that consists of over 20 repositories, where he utilizes web development technologies like HTML, CSS, NodeJS, and GatsbyJS. Sellappan also helps to guide CVT project teams in using data science tools: specifically Python and Tableau.
After the onset of the pandemic, Sellappan was drawn to the mission of the CVT, and he sought to make a difference in combatting the infodemic.
“As I was looking for a space to contribute to spread awareness or help during the COVID-19 Pandemic, I came across CVT and applied to be a part of the research team,” notes Sellappan. “With my passion to help grow the organization, I was promoted to the Director of Engineering/Development role. As the state of the pandemic is brightening up, the projects that we are focusing on are now post-COVID and other fundamental health issues in our society, and I get a chance to work on them along with the other researchers.”
Sellappan’s work in the CVT has been essential to the efficiency and functionality of our organization’s tech platforms, and he further grows his skillsets with each consecutive day. His favorite part about working with the CVT is the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction he gets from contributing to a greater cause, while guiding others on the path of mastering new technologies.
Through his work, Sellappan has learned invaluable skills from the other members in this team, and he cites time management as his biggest asset.
“I strongly believe my time management skills have significantly improved due to the amount of work I am involved in,” notes Sellappan. “With this skill that is in the developmental stages, I can use this in my higher education and career opportunities which can allow me to get some personal time to spend with family and friends.”
Outside of CVT, Sellappan is involved with many other extracurricular pursuits growing his skillset and interests.
He is currently serving as a student researcher at the Virginia Commonwealth University’s College of Engineering. Recently, Sellappan presented a prototype version of his project to the President of the University and Former Governor of Virginia, Governor McAuliffe, as well as the current Mayor of Richmond, Mayor Stoney.
Sellappan was formally recognized for the work he’s done, and he is excited to continue researching at Virginia Commonwealth University over the upcoming months.
When he’s not busy presenting famous research, Sellappan can be found catching up on his favorite novel or immersing himself in his culture by taking carnatic music classes.
Overall, Sellappan is a valuable asset to the CVT executive board, and he continues to direct CVT data science initiatives with expertise, intellectual passion, and profound insight.
Email him at s.alagappan529@gmail.com if you want to discuss anything from Python to carnatic music!
