Tell us about yourself! What do you enjoy doing outside of the office?
My family originally came to the US from mainland China. We followed my husband’s professional journey, which first took us to Sweden where we lived for four years. From there, we moved to the United States and settled in Minneapolis. We then spent 4 years in Nevada, and then moved from there to Penn State.
Outside of work, I like to do lots of different things! I like gardening, biking, hiking, skiing in the winter, swimming, knitting, sewing, socializing with friends, cooking—I like to keep busy in my spare time.
Describe your professional history– what led you to working at OPAIR?
I began my career working in graduate admissions offices for over 10 years at two universities in China. After moving to the United States, I attended Saint Paul College in Minnesota where I transitioned into computer programming. In 2002, I started a job as a SQL Server database administrator, and in 2008 I joined Penn State. Over the past 20 years, I’ve worked as a database administrator and Crystal Report developer. After joining Penn State, I mainly focused on data warehousing, ETL, and architect development. When I first joined Penn State, I was part of the BI team. Later, when the teams merged, I became part of OPAIR, where I’ve been ever since.
What does your day-to-day look like as a Data Engineer?
Our team develops and supports databases that serve iTwo, Power BI, and OPAIR reporting. Typically, I have a couple of projects at a time. My responsibilities include gathering information, analyzing the data, designing the structure, developing ETL processes, coding the program, and validating the data. After that, I migrate the data from the dev or test server to the acceptance server, test the process, and validate the data with data users or the project request unit. If everything checks out, I release the project to production. Additionally, I handle data-related inquiries, verify the accuracy of data, provide troubleshooting support, and modify the current process if needed.
Another significant role across our team is ensuring the timely and successful daily data loading from various sources into the data warehouses every morning. We are responsible for notifying functional teams and data users if there are issues with the daily data loading process.
Are there any upcoming projects you’re especially looking forward to?
The most important project we’re currently focusing on is upgrading one of our ETL Tools – ODI (Oracle Data Integrator) from version 11g to 12C. This is a highly intensive endeavor involving the adoption of a newly redesigned and programmed version of ODI. ODI plays a crucial role in loading all student information into our SIA (Student Information Analytics) data warehouse which mainly serves iTwo Reporting. This project is a top priority for my team, and I am technically leading the project and collaborating closely with consultants to ensure its successful completion by the end of the summer.
In addition to the ODI upgrade, we have several upcoming projects within OPAIR for the IDR (Institutional Data Repository) database. These projects will enrich the IDR with more data, enhancing the information available to the University community.
Do you have any professional or personal goals you’d like to achieve by the end of the summer?
Professionally, this new ODI version is new to my team. This upgrade is not only about transitioning to a newer version but also about learning the tool comprehensively. My goal is to become proficient in using this new tool effectively by the end of the summer.
In addition to ODI 12C, I also really want to learn how to use Power BI reporting. This will help me expand my skills, provide more data insights, and offer better support to our users.