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Team Members

I am an interdisciplinary PhD student at the University of Glasgow, currently in my final year. I completed my M.Sci in Software Engineering at the University of Glasgow. My research focuses on developing computational methods for complex datasets, specifically in the field of single cell transcriptomics. In recent years the single cell approach has been gaining popularity because it allows researchers to identify novel cell types and understand disease progression, which can lead to the development of novel therapeutics. However, the analysis of such datasets requires development of new tools that can handle their underlying complexities. This is where my work fits in.

I love sharing my passion for programming, not only with students but also with researchers from other disciplines. When I am not working on my project, I can be found teaching or organising interdisciplinary workshops bringing together biologists, statisticians, and computing scientists.

I joined PWSA for the first time in 2019 when we went to Kigali, Rwanda. Over the course of two weeks, I had the great pleasure of sharing my knowledge of Python programming with our amazing workshop participants, who put a lot of effort in their learning despite work and family commitments. It was inspiring to see how much progress was made every day. I will never forget the enthusiasm, passion for learning, and the numerous light bulb moments as we were debugging code with students! I am truly lucky to be part of this amazing initiative.

Alexandrina Pancheva

Volunteer and Tutor

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I studied computing science at University College Dublin in Ireland before moving to the University of Glasgow to do postgraduate research in Computer Animation. In order to fund my postgraduate studies, I tutored undergraduate courses alongside research. After a career break to raise five children, I returned to UofG as a full-time tutor five years ago. My interests are now in Computer Science Education. I am particularly concerned with what we teach our students and what methods we use to achieve this. I am currently undergoing a PhD in the area.

I am delighted to be given the opportunity to design a beginner's course in Python programming. I am looking forward to delivering this training and I hope that teaching programming to non-computer science students will deepen my understanding of how to explain the basic computing concepts.

Fionnuala Johnson

Volunteer and Tutor

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I have an MSc in Communication Engineering from the University of Manchester. After a few years working in the telecommunication industry in Nigeria and in science communication elsewhere, I came to the University of Glasgow early in 2019 to do a PhD in Wireless Communication. My research is in the area of wireless underwater communication. As resources from the oceans continue to support life on earth, there is need to explore and exploit these resources without causing too much harm to the environment. I am studying how to sustainably retrieve data from the billions of devices that will be connected underwater in the internet of underwater things.

I believe firmly that education is the most assured route out of poverty and I am passionate about teaching life skills to young Africans. I have been volunteering with the African Challenge Scotland from the moment I arrived in Glasgow but the passion of the PWSA team soon won me over after I attended their workshop here at the University of Glasgow. I joined the team in 2020 to plan the now-disrupted PWSA 2020 Workshop. As a beginner Python user myself, I am always trying to see what problems it can help us solve and I am looking forward to sharing my experience with other learners.

Kenechi Omeke

Volunteer and Tutor

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I am a Computing Science PhD student at the University of Glasgow, with a passion for problem solving and programming. In a nutshell, my research involves employing tools from algorithmic graph theory to design efficient algorithms for matching problems. Examples of which include allocating kidneys to transplant patients, or assigning junior doctors to hospitals.

As much as I enjoy using my computing and mathematics skills to solve real-world problems, I am even more passionate about passing on my skills to those that do not have the same opportunity I had. In 2018, I started PWSAfrica to tackle the skills gap affecting many students in Africa from the computing perspective. With the support of my amazing team and the generous funding from our sponsors, we have successfully ran two programming workshops in Nigeria and Rwanda, training over 200 participants.

I am very enthusiastic about PWSAfrica and I have had a very rewarding experience leading the past workshops. As I look forward to future workshops, I am excited about the opportunity it presents: to make a significant impact in the lives of others.

Sofiat Olaosebikan

Founder and Workshop Lead

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Stephen McQuistin

Volunteer and Tutor

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