Bringing people and technology together

Gazheek Morrisseau-Sinclair has many talents. She is a computer analyst who loves to solve problems. She loves working with people, too. It’s no wonder she will be graduating from the Informatics program. “I want to solve business problems,” says Ms. Morrisseau-Sinclair. “I like how we bridge together computer work and business. I like this kind of work.”

Ms. Morrisseau-Sinclair came to Halifax to pursue a different career from her family of lawyers. Her father, Judge Murray Sinclair, was the first Aboriginal judge in Manitoba and chairs the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. “I wanted to do my own thing,” says Ms. Morrisseau-Sinclair. “I wanted to go out-of-province and I heard so many good things about Nova Scotia.”

The Informatics program combines computer programming skills with project management. The focus is on designing systems to suit the client’s needs. “The type of work we do is changing. Businesses need strong technical people who can explain things.”

Ms. Morrisseau-Sinclair is one of a few women who will graduate from the Informatics program this year. She says the stigma of computer science as an overly technical program is fading. “Computer science is very different now. We’ve grown up with technology. There’s a whole other facet where we work on saving businesses and growing companies. There are so many different types of people in computer science, which is great.”

Informatics students work with local organizations through the Community Outreach Program. Ms. Morrisseau-Sinclair worked with the Nova Scotia Firefighters School, where she led a team of seven developers to create a database system for the organization. She also created a database system for the Halifax Camerata Singers to manage donation and ticket sales information.

She hopes to stay in Halifax working on web technology and database management. “I enjoy analysis and design. A lot of times businesses don’t realize their information is an integral part of business. I want to help people.”