Name: Gregory Leedberg
Hometown: Merrimack, NH
Class: Undergraduate Alumni - Class of 2004

Durham, N.H. - Sixth-grade was a momentous time in Gregory Leedberg’s life: during that year, his family purchased their first computer, and shortly thereafter Leedberg realized he wanted to become a Computer Scientist.

After having the computer for only a month, Leedberg started programming on his own (he taught himself). Years later, he took Computer Science classes in high school so he could learn even more.

What was it about computers that fascinated Leeberg so immediately and intensely?

“Computers are so powerful, and the mystery of what you can do with them is fascinating,” he said.

When it came time for Leedberg to start thinking about college, he knew he would have to find a school with a reputable Computer Science program. But there were other things to consider as well: he wanted to be close to home, he wanted to get a well-rounded education, and he wanted to be able to pursue his other main interest – music.

“I came on a tour (at UNH) and the people were so down to earth,” he said. “It seemed like a good click with the people as I was talking to students; plus, the locale was great, and the CS program was good.”

Once Leedberg got his feet wet as a CS major, he found he was far from disappointed in the path he’d chosen.

“I felt there was a good emphasis on theory and I loved the faculty here and the small classes,” he said. “Even though I’m gone now, I stay in touch with faculty, which is not always the case.”

During his senior year, Leedberg did an internship with Dr. Michel Charpentier, working on designing a grading program.

“Professor Charpentier sent me an email my senior year to see if I’d been interested in helping him because I’d done well in his CS 671 course,” said Leedberg. “At first I was nervous because I didn’t know the language, but this project taught me to challenge myself.”

After graduation, Leedberg did an internship at Verizon before heading back to school for his Master of Engineering degree in Computer Science at Cornell University. Leedberg finished up his Master’s Degree in May 2005, and he is now working at Raytheon as a Software Engineer.

Even though he’s only been at his new job for a few months, Leedberg said he’s already applying the knowledge he gained as an undergraduate and graduate student in his new job.

“I’ve noticed that I’m falling back on a lot of stuff I learned in my CS courses at UNH,” said Leedberg. “It really, really all comes back.”

- Rachel Purnell, CS Department Staff