A young Bronx woman who lost her hearing after a case of meningitis is hoping to help other people facing similar challenges.

Mariella Paulino just ended a yearlong fellowship with nonprofit Code For Progress, which helps young people create technological innovations. The 25-year-old was one of only 12 chosen out of 424 applicants.

Paulino, who lost her hearing at age 7, took the fellowship in Washington, D.C. to try and make a positive change for people in her shoes. Her goal is to make software so that the brain of a deaf person has the ability to hear only what they want to hear, and not background noise.

Though the fellowship is over, the Bronx native is already fielding offers in hope of making that software.