Meet the brains behind Aggie Service.  When he's not leading an effort to bring running water to his home in Kenya, or raising his young family, Sam oversees the development and security of one of UC Davis' most widely-used systems. 

Growing up in Kenya, what formative experiences shaped you? 

My circumstances were one of having limited resources: personal finances, three room mud house with no electricity, and no clean, running water.  As such, I developed a great resilience and learned how to make the most out of what I had.  Living with no clean running water, we had to go to the river and cart it back home.  It built my economical mindset. I learned how to get by with just a few clothes, and spread what little we had among six siblings. 

I was greatly inspired by tourists and visitors from Europe and America who came through the area - Safari vacationers, tourists, Christian missionaries, and non-religious organizations. Their uniqueness sparked my curiosity. I was attracted to how informed they were about life, and wanted to discover where they were from.

To give back, you started a program to bring clean water to the area. How did that come about?

I worked for the nonprofit World Vision, USA in Seattle.  They specialized in providing financial resources to areas and communities that were less privileged.  I was able to lobby the leadership and top management, raise funds, then offer these resources to Lower Subukia, Kenya and its neighboring environs where I grew up, so they could have access to running water.   I was nominated as a World Vision Child Ambassador.

Do you have any cultural traditions?

Kenya is multi-ethnic, with the Nilotes, Bantus and Cushites.  Each tribe has unique traditions, though most overlap.  For instance, Nilotic Kalenjins are the predominant running tribe in Kenya, who are very talented at running long races. In my Kikuru community, we had ritual rites every year - between November and December marking the transition from childhood to adulthood.  Local school districts put on sporting and music events, bringing people from all communities together.

The Rift Valley is legendary for producing the world’s top distance runners.

Yes indeed, however one thing that needs to be brought to people's attention is how climate change has been adversely affecting the area over time. I vividly remember while growing up in Lower Subukia, we were surrounded by marshlands and forests. We’d hunt deer and antelopes then share this delicacy.  But things are no longer the same. That same home area is now bordering on semi-arid.  Wild animals have migrated away, and as things modernize, that has slowly seeped into the culture.  Local communities, predominantly farmers, are resorting to other means of livelihood as a result of prolonged droughts.  This has never been experienced before.

Your dream as a child was to be a computer programmer. How did you end up at Eastern Oregon University?

It all started when I attended a boarding high school thirty miles from my home. My freshman and sophomore years were very difficult because I lost both of my parents due to a lack of proper health care.  At the same time, I met an American Peace Corps volunteer, Dave Princehorn, who taught math at my school, inspired me, and exposed me to technology. We became great friends and as a result, I aspired to computer science as a career goal. Although it was a winding road due to resources, I did a course in education to be a high school teacher, but my computer science dream never ended.  At that point I started looking at Universities outside of Kenya in Japan and the U.S.  Eastern Oregon was financially very favorable to International students, and also accepted my International transcripts.  With other universities I would have had to start fresh.

With your background, did you land a job right out of college?

After graduating from Eastern Oregon with a degree in computer science, I relocated to Seattle with the hope of using my expertise and training to land a job at Microsoft. Microsoft had an East African regional office which offered mentorship classes. I picked up a lot of things.  With an eye on working in tech, I also looked at Silicon Valley but ended up in Redmond, Washington where I worked as a contractor. 

So now you’re at Davis, where you have played a key role building Aggie Service, collaborating with your mentor Jose Boveda, and Alex Vela and Nicole Snethen of the SSO. Take us through the timeline.

While I was considering UC Davis, I also had an offer with Sac State but the SSO had an opening for a programmer/developer. I had not yet built anything in Salesforce, so I started from scratch.  Jose mentored me and Alex provided me the business requirements, and with that, I retooled myself to become what I am today, after three years.

And now you have stepped into some pretty big shoes. What’s the difference between the two roles? 

I’m now a senior developer, but there’s a lot of carryover and consistency in what I do.   

With Aggie Service, what are you most proud of, and what are the challenges you face with security issues, system failures, etc.?

I’m proud of the team I work with and their resilience. Everyone is keen to learn, and the management provides support. This is a huge plus for me and Aggie Service.  As for challenges, security is something that is always top of mind. It’s the last thing I think about at night and first thing I think about in the morning.  Things like staying on top of any security updates and looking for loopholes – this allows us to make Aggie Service a better platform.  And creating auto-notifications in case there is any suspicious activity. This allows us to take immediate measures and support the user community.

Sam, when you explain and train in a group setting, your use of analogies and metaphors is unique. How did you develop this style of communicating?

My undergraduate was in teaching.  I learned from my professors that in order to make a point understood, you need to package it so that someone who does not use your lingo or jargon can relate.  I’m also very visual and photographic in my thought process.  I read books, and I find that most writers who are successful sending a message use parables and metaphors.  I’m a great student of idioms, proverbs, analogies, and phrases. 

The “art” of language is the act of entertaining and drawing people in as you deliver your message.

If you love what you do, you always try to spice it up to make it even better. Like when cooking pasta. The ingredients are limited only by your imagination.  Language is my garlic, oregano and parmesan.