Women's History Month Profile: Sara Perez

If you’ve ever contacted the Service Desk for help with a technical issue, chances are you’ve likely run into Sara Perez, one of our IT Support Specialists. Sara is known not only for her knowledge over a wide variety of services, but also her amazing personality and determination to resolve problems for our users. We sat down and got to know a little more about Sara during Women’s History Month.  

Hey, Sara! Thanks for speaking with us today. Can you tell us a little about what your role is in ITS?    

We're [support specialists] the first line of defense for any new technical problems that may come up for our users. 

And how long have you been with ITS?   

About two years now.   

What did you do before you joined WCM?    

I was doing entertainment internships in New York City.  

Oh wow! That's quite a big jump from IT!    

Yeah, I went to school for years to do audio engineering and music and we worked with some technology then, but not nearly to the depth of IT.   

What are some of the things that you’ve worked on in ITS that you’ve been really proud of?  

I think providing a level of service as far as personability and compassion towards the user in a tough situation. I think that lacks a lot in IT in general. I like to let people know that they're not dumb… they’re a whole doctor! [laughs]  

What’s it been like handling cases during the pandemic?   

It was a really frustrating time for everyone at the beginning. Many people don't know policies set by WCM IT, or how domains work. So, if you brought your computer from campus to your home and had never signed into it before, there was usually nothing we could do to help you sign into that computer. That was probably the most frustrating thing for both parties because sometimes users would take an entire desktop back on campus until we were able to fix it with a workaround provided to Support. It was rough, but eventually we fixed that problem so we could help people. It’s a lot better now!  

What are some things you like to do outside of work? This can include pre-pandemic stuff, of course!   

I love comedy, and so anytime I get a chance to kind of delve in that creative art, I do comedy. That's one of my favorite things to do. I create characters, I do improv groups, entertain…  

You didn’t tell me about your shows – I would have gone to support!   

I have to have a show first! Right now, it’s just open mic. [laughs]  

I know, I know!   

There’s an open mic on 86th Street at the Q train, you know that?  

No, I didn’t! That’s so close to work – I’ll have to look it up. One more thing:  since it’s Women’s History Month, who are some women that you admire?   

You know, I know everybody loves this person, but it’s for real. I love Keturah [Young, ITS’ administrative assistant]. I love her personality… she’s just a dope person. And I look up to her because she has a great demeanor and a great attitude about handling difficult situations and always provides good insight. Latasha Owens is another woman I really respect [see Latasha’s profile]. Also my team lead Edita, who has been very understanding, easy to contact and has made it easy for Service Desk employees to adjust to working from home. And, I also love seeing a Vanessa Puig update for ITS!