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Every February, National Engineers Week shines a spotlight on the incredible work engineers do to improve our world. It’s a time to recognize their contributions, inspire future generations, and celebrate the creativity and problem-solving that drive innovation.
At gWorks, our engineers play a crucial role in empowering small, local communities through technology, and this week, we’re excited to introduce you to some of the brilliant minds behind our software. Today, we’re kicking off the series with Mattie Schraeder, a Senior Software Engineer on our migration tools team.
From Graphing Calculators to gWorks
Mattie’s journey into engineering started with a spark of curiosity in high school. When she got her first graphing calculator, a TI-83+, she discovered she could install games on it, and that those games were largely open source. Digging into the code, she quickly became fascinated with programming and taught herself TI-BASIC. Before long, she was even writing her own tools to help automate math homework.
Her geometry teacher, Mr. Madden, recognized her talent and introduced her to C++, which set her on the path to software development. That early exposure to coding fueled a lifelong passion that ultimately led her to gWorks, where she now helps bring small, local governments into the digital age.
Engineering and Creativity Beyond Work
Outside of software engineering, Mattie has another unique talent; she’s a published board game designer! Her first game, Heckin Hounds, is just one example of her creative problem-solving skills. She also contributes to the board game community by building software for Geekway to the West, a local board game convention in St. Louis. Whether she’s writing code for work or for fun, Mattie’s passion for building and improving systems shines through.
A Day in the Life of a gWorks Engineer
At gWorks, Mattie’s days are filled with coding, collaboration, and problem-solving. She starts each morning by preparing for the team’s daily standup, reviewing what she accomplished the day before, and planning the day ahead. Then, she dives into her work, developing migration tools that help transition data from legacy systems to the gWorks Cloud. These tools make data migration more reliable and efficient, ultimately helping communities streamline their operations.
Solving Problems, Empowering Communities
For Mattie, whether it’s a quick fix to address an immediate issue or a long-term strategy to improve future migrations, engineering is all about finding the right solution. She values collaboration, working closely with her team to make the best decisions for both the company and its clients.
What makes her work especially rewarding? Knowing that her code helps local governments function more efficiently. Having grown up in central Illinois, Mattie has a deep appreciation for rural communities, and she loves knowing that the software she builds has a direct impact on the people who live and work in them.
Celebrating Engineers Like Mattie
National Engineers Week is about more than just celebrating technical expertise, it’s about recognizing the people who use their skills to make a difference. Mattie’s story is a perfect example of how engineering can blend curiosity, problem-solving, and community impact.
Stay tuned as we continue to highlight more of the engineers behind the software at gWorks!