Hi, I'm Zeana El-Hajomar
I studied Computer Science and Business at the University of Pittsburgh, and I'm currently a graduate student studying Human-Computer Interaction at Carnegie Mellon University.
I bloom by doing food reviews 🍽️ wherever I go, experimenting with matcha recipes 🍵, baking 🍰, learning geography 🌍, and taking long walks 🚶♀️. I also co-run 412Sips 🥤, where my friends and I create culturally inspired drinks for the Pittsburgh community. 🌸
My Design Process
- Frame theProblemStep 1: Frame the Problem
- Learn fromUsersStep 2: Learn from Users
- Make Sense ofPatternsStep 3: Make Sense of Patterns
- Design &PrototypeStep 4: Design & Prototype
- Test andRefineStep 5: Test and Refine
- MeasureImpactStep 6: Measure Impact
My Design Roots
I design to create inclusive and accessible experiences, especially for underrepresented communities. Growing up in a Syrian household in the U.S., I witnessed firsthand how technology can become a barrier for my parents. These experiences taught me adaptability, resilience, and empathy, and inspired me to use design to bridge the gap between products and the people who use them.
Volunteering at my local mosque connected me with people from diverse backgrounds and allowed me to apply these skills in practice. Managing the mosque's social media helped engage the community, bring youth closer to the mosque, and showed me how design, whether in technology or communication, can bring people together.
Got Sip? I make sips for 412Sips
412 is the Pittsburgh area code. My two friends and I run a small Pittsburgh-based business serving culturally inspired sips and sweets, including matcha, espresso, non-alcoholic mojitos, lemonades, and desserts inspired by our Turkish and Syrian cultures.
The logo represents a tarboosh or fez hat, a traditional hat worn in Syrian and Turkish culture, designed to also resemble a cup. It incorporates jasmine and tulip flowers, the national flowers of Syria and Türkiye.
