Thanks to Josh Davidson and PrimeTSR as sponsors of McPherson Elementary

We are so grateful to the donations and sponsors that give to McPherson and our mission! Last year, as part of the technology fundraising campaign, Josh Davidson and PrimeTSR gave $1000 that was used towards more Chromebooks and technology needs. Read more about Josh and learn why he gives back to educate our students!

Where did you grow up and what's your education background?

·        I grew up in a small town of Warrenville, Illinois, just west of Chicago, where I went to Wheaton Warrenville South High School. From there, I stayed close to home, earning my bachelor’s degree at Northern Illinois University with a major in Computer Science and a focus on math.  

What motivated you to get into technology? 

·        I started coding in high school, so you can say that was my intro to technology. I was able to pick up the concepts fairly quickly and became pretty good at solving problems with code. The idea of thinking through a problem and being able to fix it with code was fascinating to me and it’s still just as rewarding in my work at Prime TSR.

Similarly, is there a moment, experience, time in your life that influenced your path into technology or becoming a business owner/entrepreneur? Can you describe that?

·        I always knew that technology would be a life-long career for me.  My first job out of college was a developer for Discover Card but after a couple of years, I craved a greater challenge for solving problems and started working for Accenture’s internal organization.  I had some fantastic mentors during my time at Accenture, where I was always encouraged and pushed to improve my technical skills, while developing my skills as a leader in the organization. Just a couple of years into it, I had the pleasure of leading two teams and found myself really enjoying the business side of IT.  I realized that I could be so much more effective if I married my skills in IT with the ability to budget, communicate, present, and deliver projects.  In my last year at Accenture, I realized my next challenge would be to leave and start my own company. From there, Prime TSR found its beginnings.

What projects for education, schools, etc do you support besides McPherson's tech upgrades and why?

·        I have a passion for helping students prepare for the modern workforce in Chicago.  I realized during my time at Accenture that being great at technology wasn’t enough to succeed, soft skills are just as important (if not more so).  A little over three years ago I joined the board of Genesys Works Chicago.  Their Mission is to provide pathways to career success for high school students in underserved communities through skills training, meaningful work experiences, and impactful relationships.  Prime TSR has two students from Genesys Works working with us now.  One is currently in High School and the other has just started at college.  As a business owner I’ve come to realize the importance of capable and technical talent in Chicago. Any opportunity to support a model for a brighter future in Chicago is important to me.