Wezley Sherman

Wezley Sherman says if he were granted a superpower to apply to his work as an engineer, he would choose “the ability to slow down time,” enabling him to “work on more projects and help more people.”

That choice reflects the reason Sherman chose to major in software engineering.

“I’m passionate about technology and how it can be used to enhance society. I believe that this field can impact the world in many ways, and I’m excited to be a part of it,” he says. “Working as a software engineer will allow me to do something I love while helping others utilize cutting-edge technologies.”

Those aspirations are why Sherman spent his undergraduate years at Arizona State University.

“I came to ASU because of the hands-on approach my degree program offers,” he says. “Being a part of a project-oriented program has taught me valuable skills that I wouldn’t have been taught elsewhere, like how a microprocessor is built and the design decisions behind it.

Now as he graduates, Sherman says, “I know that I made the right choice.”

One teacher in particular played a pivotal role in providing him the opportunities that enriched his educational experience.

Ruben Acuña, a lecturer in the School of Computing, Informatics, and Decision Systems Engineering, one the six Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at ASU, “was instrumental in helping me grow as a student,” Sherman says.

Acuña taught two of what Sherman considers the most difficult courses he has ever taken. But Acuña had a way of both continuously challenging and supporting students as they struggled to learn complex material.

Eventually Sherman became one of Acuña’s teaching assistants in the course, and benefitted from Acuña’s guidance and encouragement through that and other undergraduate teaching assistant assignments, as well as in “many personal endeavors I took on,” he says.

“I have been consistently inspired to be better by Professor Acuña’s drive to help students,” he says.

Sherman wants to use what he has learned at ASU to pursue his long-term goals of owning companies “focused on breakthrough tech-related developments and bringing technology to underserved populations.”

He would like one of the companies to work on enhancing the capabilities of artificial technology and “pushing the boundaries of what is currently possible with AI.”

Sherman also envisions a company that “creates programmable electronic boards that enable people around the world to build innovative solutions to problems they face.”

Read about other exceptional graduates of the Fulton Schools’ spring 2019 class here.