When I got started learning STEM, I was excited, I would be pursuing a field I loved since high school while also being the first in my family to go into the field of tech. But while attending classes I noticed that I stood out a lot more compared to the other students around me. Taking notes of who was around me I could see around 2 to 4 other students in classes of 30-50 that looked like me. Understanding that I attend a PWI and that the chances of finding those who are also African American would be significantly smaller compared to if I attended a HBCU, makes it harder to connect with others since most usually already have their own groups and aren't too open in allowing others join in. Despite the changes of attending a PWI vs an HBCU, I still notice a lack of black people in roles involving STEM whether online through social media, corporate jobs, or even attending a career fair with top companies making an attendance. It's important for people to see representation in the fields that they are aspiring to, seeing this lack of representation could make them weary that they wouldn't even make it in their chosen field. This situation is finding its way to me as well. When I first started pursuing STEM in late 2022, I was excited since everything was new to me and just wanted to learn as much as I could while being in high school. But as I graduated high school and started making my way through college, I noticed that I couldn't see a future where I would successfully progress through this field and become something later in life. My parents never taught me anything about STEM. Which is probably the case with others like me who had no idea what STEM was before randomly taking the class early on in their lives. But I want to change that. My current experience making websites/applications and databases is limited now but I want to make learning software that helps introduce children into the world of tech. The same way most parents want their children to become Doctors or Lawyers, I want to uproot the next generation of black youth to a generation of technology. I see us as more than just our physical prowess. I see us as strong, knowledgeable, and the most important of them all Powerful.

When I was close to graduating high school, I originally planned to become an electrical engineer since my father was an electrician and allowed me to work with him at his job. Up to that point, I continued thinking that was the field for me, but I didn't want to rush into a field without thinking over any other options first. Toward my junior year in high school, I had to pick which electives to choose from. Not wanting to pick ones I either had no interest in or had taken in the past, I settled on a programming class. At first, I treated the class lightly, but I soon found myself completely drawn into the course. Programming quickly became the class that I looked forward to for my entire day at school. Even though I didn't know anything about tech, I spent nights practicing and looking up programming lessons online along with the homework we were given. I felt something click: a sense of creative control and logical structure that I hadn’t experienced in other subjects. That class opened the door for me. Toward my senior year, I dual-enrolled in college programming classes and an AP course to learn more. But I wanted to do more than just pass classes. I wanted to see where my progress was at the time, so I planned to create a website from scratch for my parents’ dog food business. I pursued that small goal mainly as a surprise for them, but also to see my growth up to that point before I left for college. I started by researching frameworks and splitting my time between school, work, and coding, teaching myself new things along the way. At first, everything was exciting because I was able to start something unique to me, but later in development, I discovered that I didn’t know everything. My page designs were more advanced than what I had learned so far, so I had to downgrade my pages into something more manageable. At the end of 2024, during Christmas, I showcased my website to my parents as a gift, and their reactions made me realize that every late night was worth it. That project helped me confirm that this is the field that I want to continue to pursue. Since I got to college, my goal has been to help small businesses grow more easily while also assisting those who want to start their entrepreneurship journey. It's a big goal, but I have been developing a step-by-step plan that I hope will get me there. So far, no one in my family has done anything in tech, with me being the first person to pursue it. I see my parents come up with amazing ideas for businesses every year, and I want to replicate that for myself. Even though I didn’t grow up with mentors or resources to help me, I taught myself anyway because I found something that I love. I just have to keep pushing. Since coming to college, I plan to complete software-related coursework while assisting others with making websites and apps for their businesses. I also plan to gain extra experience in group settings by obtaining internships and participating in hackathons.

When I was close to graduating high school, I originally planned to become an electrical engineer since my father was an electrician and allowed me to work with him at his job. Up to that point, I continued thinking that was the field for me, but I didn't want to rush into a field without thinking over any other options first. Toward my junior year in high school, I had to pick which electives to choose from. Not wanting to pick ones I either had no interest in or had taken in the past, I settled on a programming class. At first, I treated the class lightly, but soon found myself completely drawn into the course. Programming quickly became the class that I looked forward to for my entire day at school. Even though I didn't know anything about tech, I spent nights practicing and looking up programming lessons online and with the homework we were given. I felt something click: a sense of creative control and logical structure that I hadn’t experienced in other subjects. That class opened the door for me. Toward my senior year, I dual-enrolled in college programming classes and an AP course to learn more. But I wanted to do more than just pass classes. I wanted to see where my progress was at the time, so I planned to create a website from scratch for my parents’ dog food business. I mainly pursued that small goal as a surprise for them, but also to see my growth up until that point before I left for college fully. I started by researching frameworks and splitting my time between school, work, and coding, teaching myself new things along the way. At first, everything was exciting because I was able to start something unique to me, but later in development, I soon discovered that I didn't know everything. My page designs were more advanced than what I had learned so far, so I had to downgrade my pages into something manageable. At the end of 2024, during Christmas, I showcased my website to my parents as a gift, and their reactions made me realize that every late night was worth it. That project helped me confirm that this is the field that I want to continue to pursue. Since I got to college, my goal has been to help small businesses grow easier while also assisting those who want to start their entrepreneurship journey. It's a big goal, I plan to complete software related classwork while in school, while on the side assist others with making websites and apps for their businesses and getting any extra experience in a group setting by obtaining internships and participating in hackathons. So far, no one in my family has done anything in tech, with me being the first person to pursue it. I see my parents come up with amazing ideas for businesses every year and want to replicate that for myself. Even though I didn't grow up with mentors or resources to help me, I taught myself anyway because I found something that I love. Just must keep pushing.

Since my time from elementary school to high school I had mostly forgotten my love of computers and making websites due to other factors in my life that I had to worry about, but every now and again I would come back to those thoughts that asked, “how were websites and apps made?” since I would use computers to help me solve problems from that week’s math test or to study for other subjects that I would struggle with. It wasn’t until I got to my Junior year of High School that I finally focused on what the process of making websites and apps would be like when out of a whim I randomly chose to take a computer course as an elective just to fill my schedule with something for that year. When I first took the class I found it boring and first since it was the first couple of days. But later in the course, as my understanding of the subjects began to become clearer my enjoyment was almost hard to contain. The course evolution started everyone off with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, then once the first semester finished the second semester kicked us off with Python. That class touch me the essentials but with each lesson I felt every new thing connect to each other like a puzzle. Having known nothing of the course I didn’t meet my expectations, but I didn’t care I wanted to continue with what I recently just learned with the following year taking another computer course and passing with flying colors. Soon taking college level classes while still in high school. Having graduated from both high school and community college I plan to continue my studies at a 4-year institution. Besides just working on programming I have been confronted by multiple people having amazing business ideas whether they are starting food businesses, clothing stores, or selling their skills. I have noticed that they don’t get that much attention compared to bigger owned business, which what the bigger business can achieve easily the smaller business could struggle with. Usually ending up with them needing to spread themselves to multiple forms of media to get their business across. I want to make an app that can help businesses of all sizes promote themselves in one constant place while still being a place of entertainment for others. I find it difficult to keep up with multiple tabs on computers, multiple apps running on my phone, and keeping up with social medias. When I got started learning STEM, I was excited, I would be pursuing a field I loved since I was younger. But while attending classes I noticed that I stood out a lot more compared to the other students around me. Taking notes of who was around me I could see around 2 to 4 other students in classes of 30-50 that looked like me. Understanding that I attend a PWI and that the chances of finding those who are also African American would be significantly smaller compared to if I attended a HBCU, makes it harder to connect with others since most usually already have their own groups and aren't too open in allowing others join in. Despite having a hard time finding equal representation in the tech field. I still want to see where I would end up once I do make my dreams come true. I would just have to become the inspiration others like me can look to let them know it is possible to make it. You just have to see your dreams all the way.

When I got started learning STEM I was excited, I would be pursuing a field I loved since high school while also being the first in my family to go into the field of tech. But while attending classes I noticed that I stood out a lot more compared to the other students around me. Taking notes of who was around me I could see around 2 to 4 other students in classes of 30-50 that looked like me. Understanding that I attend a PWI and that the chances of finding those who are also African American would be significantly smaller compared to if I attended a HBCU, makes it harder to connect with others since most usually already have their own groups and aren't too open in allowing others join in. Despite the changes of attending a PWI vs an HBCU, I still notice a lack of black people in roles involving STEM whether online through social media, Corporate jobs, or even attending a career fair with top companies making an attendance. It's important for people to see representation in the fields that they are aspiring to, seeing this lack of representation could make them weary that they wouldn't even make it in their chosen field. This situation is finding its way to me as well. When I first started pursuing STEM in late 2022, I was excited since everything was new to me and just wanted to learn as much as I could while being in high school. But as I graduated high school and started making my way through college I noticed that I couldn't see a future where I would successfully progress through this field and become something later on in life. My parents never taught me anything about STEM. Which is probably the case with others like me who had no idea what STEM was before randomly taking the class early on in their lives.But I want to change that. The same way most parents want their children to become Doctors or Lawyers, I want to uproot the next generation of black youth to a generation of technology. I see us as more than just our physical prowess. I see us as strong, knowledgable, and Powerful.

When I was close to graduating high school, I originally planned to become an electrical engineer since my father was an electrician and allowed me to work with him at his job. Up to that point, I continued thinking that was the field for me, but I didn't want to rush into a field without thinking over any other options first. Toward my junior year in high school, I had to pick which electives to choose from. Not wanting to pick ones I either had no interest in or had taken in the past, I settled on a programming class. At first, I treated the class lightly, but soon found myself completely drawn into the course. Programming quickly became the class that I looked forward to for my entire day at school. Even though I didn't know anything about tech, I spent nights practicing and looking up programming lessons online and with the homework we were given. I felt something click: a sense of creative control and logical structure that I hadn’t experienced in other subjects. That class opened the door for me. Toward my senior year, I dual-enrolled in college programming classes and an AP course to learn more. But I wanted to do more than just pass classes. I wanted to see where my progress was at the time, so I made a plan to create a website from scratch for my parents’ dog food business. I mainly pursued that small goal as a surprise for them, but also to see my growth up until that point before I left for college fully. I started by researching frameworks and splitting my time between school, work, and coding, teaching myself new things along the way. At first, everything was exciting because I was able to start something unique to me, but later on in development, I soon discovered that I didn't know everything. My page designs were more advanced than what I had learned so far, so I had to downgrade my pages into something manageable. At the end of 2024, during Christmas, I showcased my website to my parents as a gift, and their reactions made me realize that every late night was worth it. That project helped me confirm that this is the field that I want to continue to pursue. Since I got to college, my goal has been to help small businesses grow easier while also assisting those who want to start their entrepreneurship journey. It's a big goal, but I have been developing a step-by-step plan that I hope will get me there. So far, no one in my family has done anything in tech, with me being the first person to pursue it. I see my parents come up with amazing ideas for businesses every year and want to replicate that for myself. Even though I didn't grow up with mentors or resources to help me, I taught myself anyway because I found something that I love to do. I understand that with being the first person in my family to learn a new field, there will be challenges. I know I can overcome them if I try my hardest.

Growing up, I wanted to be an electrical engineer, partly because I enjoyed math and partly because I admired my father, who works as an electrician and would let me work with him when I was younger. But as I got older, especially during the later years of high school, I started to doubt whether that path was truly mine to pursue. When it came time to choose electives in my junior year, I took a chance on my first programming class: mainly because I wanted to try something new. That decision would end up changing everything. At first, I thought the class was boring: it moved slowly during the first few days. But later in the course, as my understanding of the subjects began to become clearer my enjoyment was almost hard to contain. The course evolution started everyone off with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, then once the first semester finished the second semester kicked us off with Python. That class taught me the essentials but with each lesson I felt every new thing connect to each other like a puzzle. Having known nothing of the course I didn’t meet my expectations, but I didn’t care I wanted to continue with what I recently just learned with the following year taking another computer course and passing with flying colors. Soon taking college level classes while still in high school. Outside of academics, I enjoy baking for myself and my family. Sometimes it because I’m craving something sweet, and other times I just want to try a new recipe I found online. Baking is something I picked up from my mother. Some sweets I like to make are cookies, cakes, pies, and cinnamon rolls. I’ve also experimented with cooking other dishes like mac and cheese, spaghetti, cheese dip, and pizza, though I’m much more confident in baking than with cooking When I’m not in school, most of my free time is spent working. I started working at the age of 15, first helping my father at his old job site to get a feel of the workforce. After that, I worked at Cold Stone, the job that my sister used to work at, eventually I began finding job opportunities on my own. These early work experiences taught me responsibility, work ethic, and time management. Besides just working on programming I have been confronted by multiple people having amazing business ideas whether they are starting food businesses, clothing stores, or selling their skills. I have noticed that they don’t get that much attention compared to bigger owned business, which what the bigger business can achieve easily the smaller business could struggle with. Usually ending up with them needing to spread themselves to multiple forms of media to get their business across. I want to make an app that can help businesses of all sizes promote themselves in one constant place while still being a place of entertainment for others.

Since I am the only on in my family that is going to school for programming I am seen as the "Tinkerer" of the family. Even though I tell my parents and others that I know that I don't know how to fix every device that breaks, they still tend to look to me whenever something stops working. Growing up, I never initially planned to do anything in tech, I was actually more interested in electrical engineering because I used to help my dad, who is an electrician, at his job. I also enjoyed math throughout my years in middle school and high school. Still, even back then, there were small moments where I surprised my family with how comfortable I was around technology. When I was younger me and my family would travel to my grandparents house whenever we were free from both school and work. My grandfather had a computer in his office that he would let me use from time to time. The most I would use the computer for would be to play flash games and watch YouTube. My grandfather would use the desktop for work on the rare chances he couldn't make it in person, so I would be the main person using the computer whenever me and my family would come around. When my grandfather would use the computer he would always turn it off completely, leading to me having to boot up the computer cold. On rare occasions when I would get on Internet explorer the wifi would fail to connect successfully leading to me most days getting off the computer frustrated since I wasn't able to do anything on it. But one day I was bored around their house and wanted to figure out what the problem was with it. When I clicked on internet explorer and found the error message I found my way to the settings screen to run a diagnostic, since I didn't know what most of the text was telling me I decided to just randomly click around the settings to figure out what the problem was. My grandparents house was close to their neighbors, with the neighbors not having a wifi password. In addition, my grandparents router didn't work all the time so his computer would automatically connect to the neighbors around him, but their networks wouldn't work as well due to the far distance. So all I had to do was connect back to their main router and make sure that the same wifi is connecting every time the computer is turned on. After a while he noticed that he didn't need to keep restarting his computer every time he was on it, and asked me what I did to his computer. Since I was the only other person who would use that computer when he wasn't on it all it told him was that I switched the internet connection to always pick up from their house. He smiled and told me that he would have to start watching from now on, and I walked off. I felt happy about that.