A hairdresser turned information technology professional, Jessica Knaak finds similarities in the two careers.
“Clients want things they can’t have, and you have to figure out how to create something they’ll like,” she says.
Jessica (Gilmore) Knaak, who received her bachelor’s degree in information science and technology from UWM in 2014, does web development at Rexnord Corp. She’s also active with the local chapter of Girls in Tech (GiT), an international organization that encourages women to go into high-tech fields and create their own start-ups.
Knaak graduated from high school in 2000. She said she feels fortunate to be part of the first generation of students for whom working with computers is routine. The children in her kindergarten class at Cushing Elementary in Delafield “were kind of guinea pigs,” she said. “I’ve had some sort of computer class since I was five.”
In school, she loved science, mathematics and the arts. She played the flute and competed in the Math Olympiad. But it took her a while to figure out what she wanted to pursue as a career. She tried college, then got her cosmetology license and worked as a beautician for eight years until a broken ankle, disk problems and the recession led her to look for a different career.
She started an accelerated business administration program at Cardinal Stritch University, transferred to UWM and then decided business wasn’t the right major for her. But she loved one class – database management. Her professor suggested she attend an open house at UWM’s School of Information Studies, and that’s where she found her passion.
“I took my first HTML class and found it was the perfect atmosphere for me, combining my creative and scientific interests,” Knaak said. “I love problem-solving and information science was all about solving problems.”
She studied everything from “heads-down coding,” to classification and indexing to website design. Along with her IST degree, she earned a certificate in digital arts and culture. She particularly enjoyed working with UWM’s App Brewery, developing apps for nonprofits.
“That was an amazing opportunity,” Knaak said. “It really taught me how to work in the real world, talk to clients, create designs and be a project manager.”
The IST program was flexible. During the second semester of her junior year, Knaak spent six weeks abroad, taking classes online.
“My teachers were amazing; I got all my work done on time – and I was in Australia,” she said. “That was incredible.”
But although she felt supported and encouraged by her instructors, she noticed that other women didn’t seem as comfortable in a field still perceived as male-dominated. So when an invitation went out to join a new chapter of Girls in Tech, she was quick to sign up.
“I went because I wished there was someone to tell me when I started school in 2011 what I know now,” said Knaak, who now serves as the local chapter’s assistant director.
Girls in Tech has formed a partnership with the local Girl Scouts to encourage girls to go into science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. Members, who range in age from Girl Scouts to women in their 60s, get together monthly to talk about technology, socialize and organize visits to local schools.
“We’re bridging the gap between all the opportunities in Milwaukee, and the women who don’t know about them,” Knaak said. “Women – and men, too – are learning that information technology can be more than just math and science. It involves problem-solving and creativity.”
Organizations in the past haven’t fully tapped the pool of talented women in IT, she said. But now, “I feel like we’re the cusp of something great.”
