He wanted a career in tech. This foundation shaped his future and changed his life.
In eighth grade, Steven Kwan didn't know if he wanted a career in Science, Technology, Engineering or Math (STEM), but he knew that he wanted a $1,000 scholarship for college.
Steven Kwan in eighth grade, when he started with TAF. Photo courtesy of Steven Kwan.
Kwan's parents, first-generation immigrants from China, had always stressed the importance of education, so when the Seattleite reached the eighth grade he understood that he'd have to start saving for college.
When Kwan learned that Seattle's Technology Access Foundation (TAF) was offering $1,000 scholarships for successful completion of each year of its Technical Teens Internship Program (TTIP), a high school STEM program, he applied ā even though he didn't know much about TAF.
The scholarship and organization would go on to shape his entire career.
Photo courtesy of TAF.
TAF is dedicated to making futures in STEM possible for people of color and other underrepresented students in Washington State. Through education and building connections, TAF is helping to create the tech leaders of tomorrow and bridge the gap in representation in the technology sector.
Kwan was part of TAF's original venture into education as a member of TTIP, an after-school program. While most kids were using computers to play around with instant messaging, Kwan was spending six hours a week learning about programming, software engineering and professional development skills like interviewing and collaborating with others on the job.
āThe goal of that was to help us develop these technical skills so that, come summertime, they would help us find internships within the Seattle area to make use of those skills," says Kwan.
Two things happened later that year: Kwan learned that $1,000 wasn't enough money to go to college, and he decided he wanted to pursue a career in tech.
So he spent the next four summers interning in the tech field, even working two summers with Microsoft, where he got hands-on experience in software development and engineering using the skills he gained from TTIP.
ā[TAF] really helped me understand what it was I really wanted to do when I got older," he says. āIt helped me explore software engineering more than just sitting in front of a computer and tapping away code. It was an opportunity to be very creative and to build things that could help people."
TAF made Kwan confident about what he wanted to do next. It also gave him the skills he needed to thrive in a field where people like him are underrepresented.
Kwan today. Photo courtesy of Steven Kwan.
Even now that he's 29, Kwan says his mentors at TAF are like family. They pushed him to be successful by providing the tools necessary for him to stand on his own. They helped him find and apply for scholarships, wrote him letters of recommendation and helped him craft his personal statements ā which, as anyone knows, is one of the hardest parts of applying to college.
āWhat that really translated to was I got into three schools," Kwan says. āI got a direct admission into the computer science department at the University of Washington."
He was also the recipient of the prestigious Gates Millennium scholarship.
Once at the University of Washington, Kwan worked hard academically and made a conscious effort to help the community. He worked with social justice groups, mentored high school students applying for institutions of higher education and took on a leadership position coordinating other mentors at a local high school.
Today, thanks to all he learned at TAF and in college, he's a senior software engineer at a major tech company where he's worked for more than seven years. But one of the most important things that TAF taught Kwan is how much representation matters. It helped him recognize that he has a voice that deserves to be heard.
āI recognize that because of [how long I've been at my job], I also now have the power to be an advocate for other people. TAF really helped to shape my lens on what diversity and inclusion looked like in tech and what equality and belonging look like."
According to a 2018 PEW research report, the vast majority of people with careers in STEM are white and male. Kwan and TAF are working to change those numbers.
Photo courtesy of TAF.
At his job, Kwan has made promoting diversity a major part of his career. For example, he's been an instrumental part of setting up his company's pride network ā a place of inclusion for LGBT+ employees.
āTAF has given me skills to be a very good advocate for myself," says Kwan. āI've realized that as a part of that it means I also have to advocate for other people as well if I want to see changes happen."
Kwan recently became a member of TAF's Board of Directors. And the organization, which he joined when it was in its early stages, has grown right along with him.
While TAF has transitioned out of after-school programming, the organization has brought all of the most important components of its previous program ā including hands-on experience, job shadowing and resume building ā to a school, TAF@Saghalie, that the nonprofit co-manages in partnership through the Federal Way School district. TAF's program still caters to underrepresented kids and has been so popular, it's grown from 300 students to over 700 in two years.
Because of TAF's hands-on approach, the kids who attend the school are becoming more knowledgeable and confident than even their biggest supporters might have expected.
āThe way we have the students collaborate in a project-based learning environment, they start being accountable, responsible for each other's success," says Tyrone Cunningham, a Development Officer for Corporqate Relations with TAF.
TAF also gives its students a chance to volunteer and use their skills to work on solving real-life problems ā such as homelessness ā in order to stoke their passion for working within the community. This leads to more and more kids giving back as adults, just like Steven Kwan.
And one of the main reasons that TAF has been able to help so many kids succeed is thanks to partnerships with and investments from companies like Capital One.
Photo courtesy of TAF.
āCapital One has been so amazing to our kids in a variety of ways, from getting their employees to volunteer with [the students] to hosting job shadowing and internships," says Sherry Williams, TAF's Executive Director of Development. Capital One has also invested significantly in TAF, even helping the organization build out a robotics and engineering lab for the school.
But Capital One's contributions go way past the monetary:
āThey have given an endless amount of time," Williams goes on. āWhat makes Capital One different from other corporate partners is the investment. Corporations can write a check [and] walk away. [Capital One] can direct that money towards a certain program and feel great about it. And it is great."
āThe difference with Capital One [and its local employees] is they have really taken a holistic approach with TAF and really wrapped their arms around our organization and our students. If we send out something and say, 'Hey we need volunteers for our STEM expo' [or] 'come judge our kids' projects in March,' they're gonna show up."
This kind of support means more kids and educators will become part of a strong community that's expanding STEM's reach.
Photo courtesy of TAF.
āWe alums understand what it means to be a part of a collective whole," says Kwan. "I think one of the greatest things is that we recognize that we're all still needed to continue the work so the people coming up behind us don't have to face some of those struggles that some of us had to face with being the only person of color [at work]."
As the organization grows, Kwan hopes that the conversation evolves beyond just creating space for minority groups in STEM fields to what changes must be made to retain those same groups in this industry. And, while he's on the board, he hopes he can help shift the narrative of what it means to be a professional and give people like him even more access to STEM than when he was a kid.
One thing's for certain ā with TAF getting bigger and people like Kwan at its helm, the future of STEM is only getting brighter.
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All of this will be ours one day. Yay. 
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TV for waking. TV for sleep. 
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Mom is totally humiliated after her kindergartner tells the teacher what she does for work
She was clearly mortified.
A mom is embarrassed by her child.
One of the great joys and stresses of parenting is that you never know what will come out of your childās mouth. When you have young, inquisitive kids, they can say really inappropriate things to people without realizing they were being rude or possibly offensive. TikTok influencer Aurora McCausland (@auroramccausland), known for her DIY cleaning tips, recently told a funny story on the platform about how her son believes she makes a living. The problem was that she heard about it from her child's teacher.
Mom is embarrassed by her child
āThe other day, I went and picked my five year old up from school and when I get to his classroom his teacher pulls me inside and says, āHey, today he wanted to tell us about what Mommy does for work and said that Mommy makes videos in her bedroom but only when I'm [heās] not at home,ā McCausland recalled.
Given her body language while telling the story, McCausland was clearly mortified after hearing what her child said to his teacher. It makes it look like she may be posting videos to adult sites while her child is at school, which most people wouldnāt want their sonās teacher to know about.
The good news is that another teacher was there to clarify the young boy's comments by adding, āI think she makes TikTok videos.ā The uncomfortable situation was a great invitation to chat with her son about what she does for a living. āSo I have to have a conversation with my son about how he tells people what I do for work,ā she finished her video.
The funny video went viral, earning over 1.7 million views on TikTok, and inspired many people to share the times when their children had funny ways of explaining their careers. The commenters were a great reminder to parents everywhere that if your child says something embarrassing, it's ok, just about everyone has been through it.
Moms share their most embarrassing moments
A lot of parents spoke up in the comments to show McCausland that she's not the only one to feel embarrassed in front of her child's teacher.
"My son told everyone that we were homeless (because we donāt own our home, we rent)," KBR wrote.
"I work in ortho.. my daughter told her teacher I steal people's knees bc she heard me talking to my husband about a knee replacement," Aingeal wrote.
"My son told a teacher we were living in our car over the summer. Camping. We went camping," Kera wrote.
"In kinder, my son thought Red Bull was alcohol and told his teacher I liked to have beer on the way to school," Ashley wrote.
My niece told her teacher her mom and dad work at the wh*re house. They work at the courthouse," Ellis wrote.
"My husband works as a table games dealer at a casino. Kindergartener, 'Daddy's a Dealer!' We now start every school year clearly stating he works at the casino," CMAC
"My son said we lived in a crack houseā¦Thereās a tiny chip in the wall from the doorknob," KNWerner wrote.
"My dad is a hospice chaplain and officiates a lot of funerals. My son and nephew were asked by their preschool teacher if their papa was retired or had a job. They told her his job was to kill people," Tiffyd wrote.
"My son said "my dad left me and I'm all alone" to a random person at the zoo. My husband was just at work," Shelby.
"I am now in my 70s. In my gradeschool, during the McCarthy era, I told my teacher my dad was a communist. He was an economist," Crackerbelly wrote.
"In Kindergarten, my daughter told her teacher that mommy drinks and drives all the time. Coffee. From Starbucks," Jessica wrote.
"Well I once told my kindergarden teacher a man climbs over our fence to visit my mom when her husband is not home... It was a handy man who came to fix gates when they were stuck," Annie wrote.
Ultimately, McCauslandās story is a fun reminder of how children see things through their own unique lens and, with total innocence, can say some of the funniest things. Itās also a great warning to parents everywhere: if you arenāt clear with your kids about what you do for a living, you may be setting yourself up for a very embarrassing misunderstanding. So, even if you think they know what you do ask them as see what they say, you could save yourself from a lot of embarrassment.
This article originally appeared last year and has been updated.