Finding purpose through volunteering
In conversation with Brittany Mascio
We chatted with Shelley Nason, a former U.S. Digital Response (USDR) volunteer and software engineer for the Technology Transformation Services (TTS), a division of the U.S. General Services Administration.
Shelley shared her experience exploring her career paths in software engineering while staying curious and open to new opportunities from cybersecurity to logistics. In our conversation, we discuss the benefits and comfort of volunteering after being laid off, including developing new skills and gaining valuable connections in the industry. We learn her perspective on navigating relationships in the tech industry, highlighting the importance of building community, learning with others, and staying curious about new opportunities.
This interview has been edited for reading purposes. We hope you enjoy it!
USDR: Just to break the ice, tell us about your background. How would you describe your professional journey?
SN: I’m a full-stack software engineer. I build web apps — I can build the front end, I can build on the back end. I’m interested in the domain aspect of building software and getting to know a domain so that you can build software for it. I like building stuff, and I like solving problems.
I went to grad school for math — I hated it. But I thought I might be interested in computers and AI. So when I switched programs, I went on to get my master’s degree in computer science and they were happy to have someone with a math background. Then I went out into the world, with military contracts being one of the first opportunities I explored.
I worked on various projects in cybersecurity for several years and before my job at a logistics company, I had thought about maybe trying to go into government — but looking back, I wasn’t ready yet. When I was laid off for the first time in my career, I started my journey into government work.
I’m doing something valuable now. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt that way about a job. I was hoping that getting a job in government would be the first time that I truly felt like that.
USDR: I’m curious to learn more about how you connected with USDR. What led you to volunteer?
SN: It was at a time when Silicon Valley was laying off so many people, and I was laid off, which surprised me. So, I’m laid off and I have some money, nothing to do. I was thinking about getting a job in government, but it’s a slow process. The Tech to Gov effort was trying to [inspire people to go into government] and I was aware of USDR pretty soon after being laid off.
I had a severance package that supported me for a little while and I didn’t want my skills to decay. By joining USDR, I ended up feeling like I had a job. Which was [for me] comforting.
It was a good fit — USDR gave me something to do that I was good at. And it was familiar. And it was a volunteer activity, which I hadn’t had time to do in my life [before].
USDR also gave me access to a bunch of people who were deeply involved in public service, a lot of them had worked in government or knew about working in government. It was also so good for good networking.
USDR: Tell me about your role as a volunteer for USDR. Can you talk a little bit about your project? How do you interact with partners? What aspects of the job surprised you most?
SN: I was an engineer for the grants program at USDR.
The Federal government has a website called grants.gov, which is where you go if you want to apply for a grant from the federal government. The whole process of actually finding and applying for a grant is [really complex] and [requires] a lot of reporting. There were also usability flaws with grants.gov.
At USDR, we discovered justifications for new tools [for the grant identification process]. We were also doing research to pin down the value proposition for USDR’s Federal Grant Finder Tool, and noticed a sense of community [within] the grants ecosystem was lacking. So, we built a way for them to network with each other in USDR’s Finder tool.
USDR invited me to their User Research meetings, and I was excited. I didn’t realize it at the time, but these meetings were probably the first time I saw actual user research being done.
USDR: It seems like there are a lot of ripple effects from volunteering. Can you give me an example of a time when you connected with another USDR volunteer?
SN: In a USDR Volunteer Slack channel [for volunteers interested in transitioning to roles within government], during [my] hiring process, I was reporting some things about how long it was taking, and I connected with one other person who was going through the same hiring journey, in the federal government at the same time as me.
With more people going through USDR sharing their experience, that means even more resources going forward.
USDR: What would you say to people who are considering becoming a volunteer with USDR?
SN: If you are a person with a technical background, who is looking to do some of the public service minded work in your free time, then it’s a great opportunity. You get to work with other smart people doing work that seems valuable.
I had a conversation with another female software engineer that I worked with a little while ago. She’s thinking about retiring. I suggested she look at USDR — it’s such a good place to put your skills to use. It’s a great opportunity for anyone looking to volunteer. If you are also looking to try to transition to this public service domain, I think volunteering with USDR is a bonus that puts you into the community.
Want to start your own civic tech journey?
- Check our our series on transitioning to government from big tech.
- Join a USDR volunteer info session.
- Read other stories from our volunteers.
