Technology can be very valuable to everyone who knows how to use it for the right reasons, and I have always aspired to use technology to my advantage to help those around my community use it for their own benefits. I come from a low-income city called Richmond in California, and I know from firsthand experience that electronics such as laptops, computers, and phones aren't easily affordable for many and those who do have these things aren't always sure how to use them to their fullest potential. Younger students in elementary schools specifically have the ability to start learning what STEM is about, how enjoyable the projects can be, and how much of a great career path it is to pursue. I did not know how fun STEM could be until my freshman year of high school, and I wish my schools previously would have introduced this technology and career path sooner. For that reason I plan on someday having some sort of ownership or a leadership position somewhere where I can make these resources more accessible to the younger generation of students who come from underfunded communities such as mine. When I was learning how to code, I remember it being confusing and frustrating. However after successfully completing a project, and seeing my ability to create something gave me this sense of satisfaction that became addicting. It only made me think about how much fun younger students would have going through the process of a programming project with a satisfying pay-off in the end. Considering how difficult programming can be for a younger student to learn, it is necessary to create a curriculum that fits their abilities and ages. Kid friendly projects that can walk the student through what certain code commands mean and what they do can help lessen any confusion and only increase their interest in learning this new skill. Storytelling for example is a good way to explain more intricate concepts by comparing them to things in our daily lives that a younger student can understand. Having them go through this storytelling quest while learning how to use code commands to continue unlocking more "superpowers" seems like a great introduction to programming in general. Simple projects such as the one I described are ways that I have thought of using what I will learn to teach someone else in a more intriguing and less stressful way. While younger generations are learning about the importance and power that a simply computer has, they'd also simultaneously gain an interest in pursuing a STEM related career. It gives disadvantaged communities and their kids a chance to break any stereotypes, and pursue careers such as this one to have a fair chance like others at accomplishing their goals. While I may be one of many women pursuing a STEM career, I can be one of few who can inspire other little boys and girls to not be intimidated by the odds against their success and instead use that as their main source of motivation.

Technology can be very valuable to everyone who knows how to use it for the right reasons, and I have always aspired to use technology to my advantage to help those around my community use it for their own benefits. I come from a low-income city called Richmond in California, and I know from firsthand experience that electronics such as laptops, computers, and phones aren't easily affordable for many and those who do have these things aren't always sure how to use them to their fullest potential. Younger students in elementary schools specifically have the ability to start learning what STEM is about, how enjoyable the projects can be, and how much of a great career path it is to pursue. I did not know how fun STEM could be until my freshman year of high school, and I wish my schools previously would have introduced this technology and career path sooner. For that reason I plan on someday having some sort of ownership or a leadership position somewhere where I can make these resources more accessible to the younger generation of students who come from underfunded communities such as mine. When I was learning how to code, I remember it being confusing and frustrating. However after successfully completing a project, and seeing my ability to create something gave me this sense of satisfaction that became addicting. It only made me think about how much fun younger students would have going through the process of a programming project with a satisfying pay-off in the end. Considering how difficult programming can be for a younger student to learn, it is necessary to create a curriculum that fits their abilities and ages. Kid friendly projects that can walk the student through what certain code commands mean and what they do can help lessen any confusion and only increase their interest in learning this new skill. Storytelling for example is a good way to explain more intricate concepts by comparing them to things in our daily lives that a younger student can understand. Having them go through this storytelling quest while learning how to use code commands to continue unlocking more "superpowers" seems like a great introduction to programming in general. Simple projects such as the one I described are ways that I have thought of using what I will learn to teach someone else in a more intriguing and less stressful way. While younger generations are learning about the importance and power that a simply computer has, they'd also simultaneously gain an interest in pursuing a STEM related career. It gives disadvantaged communities and their kids a chance to break any stereotypes, and pursue careers such as this one to have a fair chance like others at accomplishing their goals. While I may be one of many women pursuing a STEM career, I can be one of few who can inspire other little boys and girls to not be intimidated by the odds against their success and instead use that as their main source of motivation.

My name is Tannya Deleon, and I am an incoming undergraduate freshman at UC Santa Cruz. Going to college has been the biggest goal of mine, mostly because I am a first-generation student and the youngest of 6 kids who plans on pursuing a career within the engineering field. I come from a large and devout Christian family who has always supported my career aspirations, and it is because of our faith that I am able to maintain the motivation and positivity needed to start and finish my Bachelors degree. I plan on majoring in computer science, and becoming involved in any internship opportunities to gain some experience that will help me achieve another one of my goals which is to give back to my community. I hope to achieve the ability to gain enough programming and coding experience to start up a non-profit or an accessible resource for younger students to be able to learn more about STEM. I come from a low-income city called Richmond in California, and I understand from experience how difficult it can be to have access to resources that help fuel ones passions. I had to learn the little programming and 3D modeling I know now with the help of my school and my own research through internships outside of school. The interest I've had in technology from a young age, and the love for computer science that I developed my junior year of high school is what made me seek further resources to learn as much as possible. After I can hopefully graduate college in 4 years and fulfill my goal of becoming a software engineer, I know I would have learned everything I need to help other students continue their own engineering aspirations. What I love most about this world is the amount of room there is for growth and opportunities to help others in need. What better way to start than with the ones closest to you? While I may be one of many women pursuing a STEM career, I can be one of few who can inspire other little boys and girls to not be intimidated by the odds against their success and instead use that as their main source of motivation.

I am the youngest of 6 and daughter of Mexican immigrant parents who sacrificed their well-being to give me and my siblings the chance at a better quality of life. Growing up in a low-income community caused me to realize that like many others, it's overlooked and stereotyped as unable to produce worthy students who can pursue admirable careers in the real world. I never listened however and simply kept working to maintain a high GPA and let the statistics from my "unworthy" school prove them wrong. Two of my biggest lifetime goals which were graduate high school and gain admission into a university have been fulfilled, but I am aware that pursuing a career in a male-dominated field is going to bring more adversity my way. But it is my passion for computer science and promise to myself and family that keeps me from discouraging myself and my plans. I was constantly surrounded by love and support from my large Mexican family, and having that now as I am working towards a career in STEM has helped distract me from any financial or cultural barriers that can present themselves at any time. My interest in technology and engineering started at around 7 years old after being introduced to the world of computers and video games. Being surrounded by older brothers who also had a love for this made it only right for me to follow along and develop my love for learning about the programming behind certain video games, what goes into building a computer. After joining the engineering academy at my high school and the robotics club, I decided on studying computer science in college. Getting to that deciding factor of what I wanted to study was not easy because I felt hesitant going to study something I felt unprepared for academically and financially. My school offered all readiness for an engineering career that they could by assigning certain classes and teaching us all programming and 3D modeling skills they could with what we had. That being said there was times I needed to do my own research and learn these skills on my own time at home, because an underfunded school like mine didn't have all necessary resources. It was challenging learning how to code in Python without the real-time assistance of a teacher, but I learned how to use free resources such as Google and YouTube to my advantage. I also participated in an internship with a local lab that helped me gain some job and data science experience. Given what I had to do to feel most prepared for my first upcoming year at UC Santa Cruz, I would really like to have some sort of ownership or a leadership position somewhere where I can make these resources more accessible to the younger generation of students who come from underfunded communities such as mine in the future. It gives disadvantaged communities and their kids a chance to break any stereotypes, and pursue careers such as this one to have a fair chance like others at accomplishing their goals. While I may be one of many women pursuing a STEM career, I can be one of few who can inspire other little boys and girls to not be intimidated by the odds against their success and instead use that as their main source of motivation.

Titian's artwork during the Renaissance era is my favorite due to the meaning, representation, and color included in his paintings. I enjoy seeing how his paintings represent a sense of connecting the past and present together, which can give today's world an idea of how it was living in an era such as that one. He was known for his exceptional use of colors and saturation in his paintings which to me gave his art pieces a visual appeal that makes you want to stare at if for longer periods of time to find the small details.

Technology can be very valuable to everyone who knows how to use it for the right reasons, and I have always aspired to use technology to my advantage to help those around my community use it for their own benefits. I come from a low-income city called Richmond in California, and I know from firsthand experience that electronics such as laptops, computers, and phones aren't easily affordable for many. Those who do have these things aren't always sure how to use them to their fullest potential. Younger students in elementary schools specifically have the ability to start learning what STEM is about, how enjoyable the projects can be, and how much of a great career path it is to pursue. I did not know how fun STEM could be until my freshman year of high school, and I wish my schools previously would have introduced this technology and career path sooner. For that reason I plan on someday having some sort of ownership or a leadership position somewhere where I can make these resources more accessible to the younger generation of students who come from underfunded communities such as mine. When I was learning how to code, I remember it being confusing and frustrating. However after successfully completing a project, and seeing my ability to create something gave me this sense of satisfaction that became addicting. It only made me think about how much fun younger students would have going through the process of a programming project with a satisfying pay-off in the end. Considering how difficult programming can be for a younger student to learn, it is necessary to create a curriculum that fits their abilities and ages. Kid friendly projects that can walk the student through what certain code commands mean and what they do can help lessen any confusion and only increase their interest in learning this new skill. Storytelling for example is a good way to explain more intricate concepts by comparing them to things in our daily lives that a younger student can understand. Having them go through this storytelling quest while learning how to use code commands to continue unlocking more "superpowers" seems like a great introduction to programming in general. Simple projects such as the one I described are ways that I have thought of using what I will learn to teach someone else in a more intriguing and less stressful way. While younger generations are learning about the importance and power that a simply computer has, they'd also simultaneously gain an interest in pursuing a STEM related career. It gives disadvantaged communities and their kids a chance to break any stereotypes, and pursue careers such as this one to have a fair chance like others at accomplishing their goals. While I may be one of many women pursuing a STEM career, I can be one of few who can inspire other little boys and girls to not be intimidated by the odds against their success and instead use that as their main source of motivation.

This past summer I interned at the Lawrence Berkeley Lab where I worked on a project with two other students and IT/Help Desk members. It was called Kano Kits, and was a build-it-yourself computer kit that we were able to put together, and start learning how to program and code. Once hooked up to a monitor, the kit allowed us access to over 100 creative coding challenges that we needed to learn to complete by learning how to code with Python along the way. A few examples of what we were able to complete with the project was, designing our own versions of a pong game and make cool statues using code on Minecraft! I grew up in a Christian Hispanic household, and my family's faith has always been a large part of our lives. Going to church every Sunday, saying a prayer every night before bed, or simply maintaining faith and positivity every day have helped me stay motivated to accomplish my personal goals. Having a career within the technology field is one of them. Being a Hispanic woman trying to step foot in a male-dominated field, it can be discouraging and difficult to be optimistic of my chances of achieving that goal. However my faith and passion for computer science is what helps me maintain that positivity. I am aware that with the programming and innovation skills I am continuously developing, I can start helping make positive changes to everyone's lives around me starting with my community.