EqOpTech Deploys Refurbished Laptops to ESL Students at Day Worker Center

Skylar Tom refurbishing laptops to benefit ESL students at Day Worker Center of Mountain View

Student-Led Computer Refurbishing Program

EqOpTech (www.eqoptech.org), a Los Altos 501(c)(3) nonprofit promotes equal access to technology to bridge the digital divide by giving away computers in underserved communities. Our main goals include leveling the playing field in education, providing youth with meaningful real life skills in leadership and technology, all while reviving old laptops to protect the environment.

Ongoing Covid Crisis and Technology Need

We are working hard to support our community during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis to make technology resources available and accessible to all. To bridge the technology gap for students who do not have laptops at home, EqOpTech engages and empowers students who are passionate about technology to refurbish surplus laptops and make an impact. 

This tech initiative is spearheaded by Skylar Tom, a Los Altos High student who joined EqOpTech back in March 2021. “As I volunteer with the Boy Scouts to support local community conservation projects, I also want to help in technology projects to repurpose e-waste to benefit the underserved students. I plan to major in STEM and believe that computer and software experiences at EqOpTech will improve my technical skills while helping the community in need.” 

EqOpTech deploys refurbished laptops to ESL students at Day Worker Center of Mountain View

EqOpTech donated 5 refurbished laptops to English as a Second Language (ESL) students attending ESL classes at Day Worker Center, most of whom have never owned a laptop before. 

According to the Day Worker website, ESL classes offered at Day Worker Center focus on improving the English speaking capacity of day workers so they can be successful at work and in their communities. For more information about the ESL program, visit here

Over the summer break, EqOpTech interns are working hard to fulfill more laptop requests in the pipeline. If you would like to support our efforts, please join us and make a difference. No prior computer skills are required. All students earn community service hours and learn technical skills. 


The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Mountain View Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more

Eagle Scout Breathes New Life into Old Laptops To Bridge Learning Gap during Pandemic

Jane Sanders, Almond School (left), Edison Tom, Eagle Scout Troop 37, Los Altos

Eagle scout project provides laptops to local students

For his Eagle Service Project, Edison Tom from Los Altos Troop 37 teamed up with EqOpTech to recycle, refurbish, and redeploy used laptops to support local students and families during the pandemic. Edison first joined the EqOpTech computer program as a technical engineering intern during the summer of 2019 when he was a 10th grade student from Los Altos High School. 

After attending a series of EqOpTech technical workshops, he took home 5 laptops every week to refurbish for the laptop giveaway program. Over the years Edison has progressively taken on important computer initiatives. For his eagle project, he was inspired to leverage his computer skills to provide free refurbished computer devices to all during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis for distance learning. 

“Edison has a deep passion for computer technology and has been one of the most valuable engineering interns I have worked with at EqOpTech”, says Lucy Lee, EqOpTech Board Member. “His relentless learn-by-doing efforts give hundreds of used laptops a purposeful second life at a critical time during the Covid crisis. Edison’s determination and commitment to supporting the underserved community is an inspiration to other team members.”

Troubleshooting and collaborating from a distance

Edison engaged a team of boy scouts to tackle the challenge of hosting a donation collection drive and troubleshooting donated laptops to restore them to their original functionality with operating systems and removal of personal data. One by one, he analyzed and fixed various hardware and software issues by testing each machine, troubleshooting and researching for viable solutions. 

Each device had its own unique set of problems, whether they were missing hard drives, defective devices such as broken screen or sluggish trackpads, Edison and team swapped out salvaging parts from these problematic units to build fully functioning systems. He mentored the scouts to teach them basic PC refurbishing skills (Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromium), such as removing personal data, restoring factory settings, installing drivers, operating systems, software applications, SATA drives, security and feature updates, partitioning hard drives for dual boot over a series of tutorial YouTube videos and virtual meetings via Zoom, a way to keep everyone safe during the pandemic. Edison also procured and delivered all the materials, supplies, and tools to his scout team to work and collaborate safely from home.

Other Safety Measures

To address safety concerns, Edison developed a plan to address basic safety protocols when refurbishing a computer, including turning off power, unplugging battery, static discharge, safety goggles, checking lithium batteries for damage and more. 

The Community Impact

Edison’s refurbished computer project enabled easy access to technology for local students.  With refurbished computers, at-risk students will now have free access to computers for distance learning, from attending virtual classes via Zoom/Meet, contacting school teachers, to collaborating with classmates in online research projects.

As a result of Edison’s Eagle Project, 42 refurbished laptops were donated to at-risk students at the Los Altos School District and Mountain View-Whisman School District (including Almond, Santa Rita, Theuerkauf, Gabriela Mistral, Monta Loma elementary schools).



The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Mountain View Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more

Quantum Biosystems Donates Surplus Laptops to EqOpTech for At-Risk Students

Edison Tom, EqOpTech intern (left), Jasmine Suchoski (Quantum Biosystems USA, Inc.)

Since 2015, EqOpTech, a student-led nonprofit has launched various programs to refurbish and reuse unwanted laptops to support and teach the Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics (STEM) program benefiting underserved students in Mountain View, Los Altos, Sunnyvale, San Jose and East Palo Alto. Students from low-income families will now have free access to computers for home use to take online classes and collaborate with classmates in online homework and research.

Quantum Biosystems USA, Inc., a biotech startup in Menlo Park has donated its surplus computer equipment to support EqOpTech's computer reuse program. EqOpTech interns will refurbish the donated laptops and reinstall all operating systems and software to restore the computer to its original full functionality. Over the years, EqOpTech has given a new and purposeful second life to thousands of used laptop computers and put them back to productive use for students in need.

About EqOpTech

EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.EqOpTech.org

About Quantum Biosystems USA, Inc.

Quantum Biosystems (QB), founded in 2013, applies quantum mechanics to the development of single-molecule DNA sequencers. QB is developing a single-molecule sequencing analyzer using innovative and cutting-edge processing technology of semiconductor and highly sensitive current measurement systems.


The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Mountain View Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more

Student-led Nonprofit Gives Away Refurbished Laptops to MVLA families in Need

Edison Tom Delivering Refurbished Laptops to Needy Students at Theuerkauf Elementary School

Edison Tom Delivering Refurbished Laptops to Needy Students at Theuerkauf Elementary School

By Alice Liu

 

The EqOpTech Family Refurbished Laptop program

EqOpTech (www.eqoptech.org), a Los Altos 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is collaborating with local schools to give away free refurbished laptops to families in Los Altos & Mountain View schools who do not own a laptop or computer device. With these refurbished laptops, students and families can attend online classes, Zoom meetings, access various online resources and learn new skills amidst the pandemic.

 

We are working hard to support our community during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis to make technology resources available and accessible to all. To bridge the technology gap for students who do not have laptops at home, EqOpTech engages and empowers students who are passionate about technology to refurbish surplus laptops and make an impact. 

 

This initiative is spearheaded by Edison Tom, a Los Altos High student who joined EqOpTech back in June 2019. “I am very thankful for the opportunity to help students by refurbishing these laptops and I am happy to know that these laptops can be reused for online learning,” said Tom, Lead Engineering Intern. For months, Tom and his team worked tirelessly and virtually from home to repair, upgrade, and install necessary software on all donated laptops. They put in a lot of hard work and effort outside school hours and on the weekends. The EqOpTech technical team teaches students basic PC refurbishing skills (Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromium), such as removing personal data, restoring factory settings, installing drivers, operating systems, software applications, SATA drives, security and feature updates, partitioning hard drives for dual boot over a series of virtual hands-on summer workshops via Zoom, Slack and, Google Sites.

 

Over the President’s Day holiday break, approximately 2 dozen refurbished laptops were upgraded with the latest Windows operating systems, software applications etc. and 10 were given away to families whose children attend Theuerkauf Elementary School in Mountain View. At this time, we have 20 more laptop requests in the pipeline that our team is working hard to fulfill. The program will be rolled out in phases with more schools to follow.

To apply, sign up via https://tinyurl.com/EqoptechFreeLaptopSignup

Families will be contacted when the refurbished laptops are ready to be picked up at school. 

See attached digital flyers in English and Spanish for details.

Image credit: Alice Liu

Image credit: Alice Liu


The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more

Eagle Scout Brings New Life into Used Laptops During the Pandemic for Local Students

Aditya Jaiswal, a local boy scout, collaborated with EqOpTech to refurbish old laptops and distribute them to students in need

Aditya Jaiswal, a local boy scout, collaborated with EqOpTech to refurbish old laptops and distribute them to students in need

By Alice Liu

When quarantine first started back in March of 2020, Troop 457 boy scout Aditya Jaiswal learned that 1 in 5 students in California lacked access to laptops and Wi-Fi during the transition into remote learning. Shocked and surprised at this statistics, Aditya was inspired to take on this “community service oriented project that would make a positive impact on society”. “It pained me to realize that something as essential as education just wasn’t accessible to everyone”, Aditya said.

Around that time, Aditya discovered EqOpTech from a family friend and decided to reach out to EqOpTech to help provide computers to students in need through his Eagle Project. “When Aditya first reached out to me at EqOpTech regarding an internship opportunity, I was truly impressed with his enthusiasm to help the community and his passion to learn-by-doing”, says Lucy Lee, EqOpTech Board Member. “He sets high targets and strives for technical excellence in his Eagle computer project - a mission-critical initiative during the COVID crisis.”

Once Aditya was approved to work on his Eagle Project, he reached out to his friends, neighborhood, and community for laptop donations. “After I got the laptops, I assessed what needed to be done,” he said. This involves steps like getting new SSDs, installing the right version of software, and more.

Throughout the course of his project, Aditya faced both operational and technical challenges. He mentioned that collecting laptops was challenging due to the pandemic and quarantine as well, but thank you to KPIX 5’s MacBook donations to EqOpTech, Aditya was able to procure SSD hard drive donations from his Troop, scoutmaster Solomon Lucas and Seagate to fix them up. Another challenge Aditya faced was trying to restore MacOS software on older computers. This was not an easy process as there were different hard drives, components, and more involved. He tried a lot of different methods and approaches until he was successful in installing the software version and making sure all the hard drives worked properly.

Aditya’s Eagle Project also involved a lot of Boy Scouts who assisted him in refurbishing computers. Because this was all virtual, Aditya dropped off laptops at each of the Scouts’ homes, met online to troubleshoot and collected the revived laptops once the project was done. He felt that this was “a difficult challenge to organize that since it’s all via Zoom.” Because Aditya couldn’t physically be there to offer guidance, he instead created a detailed YouTube video that showed the step-by-step process of refurbishing the computer “so that every Scout was on the same page.”

Aditya said that he learned a lot during the journey of his Eagle Project. “This taught me both leadership and technical skills,” he said. Aditya was not only able to plan a large-scale project, but was also able to tackle challenges and find solutions to problems when things went wrong. This project allowed Aditya to gain more experience in reaching out in a professional manner to community members and organizations for laptop donations, coordinating a project over Zoom, and working inside computers.

In October, Aditya completed his Eagle Computer Reboot Project after distributing the refurbished laptops at Santa Rita elementary school. Those laptops will then be assigned to students without devices at home. “The impacts of this project could not be any more crucial than the time we’re in,” Aditya states. These laptops allow students to have access to education during distance learning, where most everything is virtual. “I’m grateful to play a small part in making their future better and I hope that they get the education they deserve.” Over 30 laptops were donated to the Los Altos School District as a result of Aditya’s Eagle Project.

When asked about advice he’d give to others wanting to make an impact in their community, Aditya says to “do something you’re passionate about. It sounds cliché, but when the project is arduous and difficult and has hurdles, your passion for the project will be the one that makes you persevere and go through the project.” When he tried to find an Eagle Project, Aditya knew that he wanted to impact as many people as possible. He said working with computers and technology has always been a passion of his, and, with quarantine and distance learning, he was able to combine this passion with his passion for helping others into his Eagle Project. Aditya says that “it doesn’t have to be big, it doesn’t have to be small. Anytime you can impact someone’s life and put a smile on their face – that’s the most valuable thing you could do.”

Due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, school is now online. With this development comes many challenges, including students' access to the very technology needed to attend online school. To help face this challenge, Aditya Jaiswal, a Bay Area boy scout, collaborated with EqOpTech to refurbish old laptops and distribute them to local schools and students in need. In this video, Aditya discusses his project in greater depth and the challenges he faced, among other topics. - Connor Song

A special thank you to Connor Song, EqOpTech intern, for editing Aditya Jaiswal’s Eagle Project interview video.


The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more

EqOpTech Delivers Laptops to Students in Need Through Pandemic

By Cedric Chan

In today’s pandemic-stricken world, the economic disparities within communities are ever-more tangible. Particularly for the millions of students now forced to receive education over a virtual setting, the crisis has exposed a lack of technological resources within certain pockets of the region. Laptops — now imperative to receive any sort of instruction — were not immediately available to many families prior to the pandemic, rendering the transition to distance learning difficult and further causing anxiety for some.

Sonne Family attending Zoom classes using EqOpTech’s refurbished laptops

Sonne Family attending Zoom classes using EqOpTech’s refurbished laptops

Rising to the occasion, EqOpTech has delivered on its mission to provide equal technology access to people across the community by providing free laptops to impoverished families. Since March, the EqOpTech team has distributed over 350 laptops, providing a critical resource at a time when it’s needed most. 

Mary Sonne was one of the recipients. When remote learning began in the spring, the family of eight struggled to share a finite supply of devices. With five children in school and both parents needing to do work, the single laptop and two phones that the family had were simply not enough.

“It was very difficult; I was unable to conduct my business while they were doing their schooling,” she said. “I couldn’t set up doctor’s appointments, I couldn’t respond to calls, I couldn’t pay bills.”

At the time, Sonne said that her kids, too, struggled to get to their classes or meetings on time because their siblings were using the device. As a result, they were unable to complete all of their work during the school day, when their teachers were available to help them, and found themselves falling behind their classmates. Instead, they were forced to complete their work, half of which could only be accessed online, after school hours had ended, with little support.

Now, with a more streamlined distance learning program at her children’s school, Sonne said that it’s more important than ever to have enough devices, as everyone was required to be on Zoom at the same time — a change from the chaotic schedule that the students had in the spring. The students regularly use Google Suite products like Google Classroom, Google Slides and Google Docs to complete their coursework, and now with the donated laptops are able to “correspond way more readily with their teachers and classmates.”

Sonne said that the laptops have further helped to decrease stress levels within the family. Particularly in the hectic mornings the previously were filled with confusion about who got to use the devices first, her kids are able to go directly to their classes.

Canyon Heights Academy, the school the students attended, did have a support program for students in need, but Sonne said that she wasn’t sure if they had a ready supply of devices and didn’t want to add to the stress that administrators were already struggling from.

“I didn’t want to bother them; they were already stressed,” Sonne said. “We just figured we would make do. It was a first world problem.”

Sonne said that the process for getting the laptops from EqOpTech was “very streamlined”; all she had to do was go pick up the laptops. 

“EqOpTech really stepped up at a time when the crunch of needing more personalized devices was at an all-time high, and I’m very grateful for them for their work,” she said. “They’ve made a huge difference in our home, and I’d definitely encourage families that are feeling stretched to reach out to EqOpTech.”


EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.EqOpTech.org

The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more

Microsoft/EqOpTech Machine Learning/AI Tech Talk

Image Credit: Maya Yung

Image Credit: Maya Yung

By Alice Liu

On September 30th, 2020, Microsoft and EqOpTech hosted a virtual Tech Talk on Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) with Microsoft. The speaker panel featured Cassie Breviu and Seth Juarez. Breviu is a Cloud Developer Advocate at Microsoft who focuses on AI. Having a non-traditional background without prior experience in AI, Breviu got herself more immersed and experienced in the field by teaching herself how to code using Excel macros. Later on, Breviu went into .NET software engineering – working a lot with web applications and business process applications. From there, she got more interested in ML and started to teach herself that. Juarez helps lead the efforts for AI and ML for Microsoft Advocacy developer relations. He previously did research in natural language processing and was a graduate student at the University of Utah studying Computer Science.

Cloud Development Advocacy

Juarez kicked off the presentation explaining what advocacy is. The mission of Cloud Developer Advocacy is “to empower every person and every organization to be successful with AI, ML, and Quantum in the cloud”. This is achieved primarily through the creation of content – which can be interpreted as anything, such as a TikTok video or a blog post. This content helps empower people to be successful in utilizing AI, ML, and Quantum in the cloud. “It’s a ton of different stuff that we make,” Juarez says. He specializes in creating stories around technology and delivers talks on the technology built. Along those lines, a lot of what Breviu has been doing involves building different AI models and figuring out how to solve something. Right now, she is learning about audio processing with ML, something that combines two of her passions: programming and music. “I’ll generally write a blog post or a talk and then I’ll go and I’ll kind of share how I did that and how I maybe leveraged Azure, how I broke apart the data, and basically share whatever I’ve learned and built with people,” Breviu says. The first thing Cloud Developer Advocates do, explains Juarez, is “create content and what we try to do is we try to tell stories with the things that we build.”

At times, as products are being built, the content and stories told about that product don’t really match up with the reality of the product. That’s when refining products comes into play. Cloud Developer Advocates meet with the product groups weekly and receive scenarios that they have to create content for. While doing so, the advocates will submit feedback to the product groups for their products and meet to discuss them. Juarez describes advocates as “the first line of defense” for putting out each product.

The third thing that Cloud Developer Advocates do is grow community. That community for the advocates is usually people interested in AI. Juarez describes this whole thing as a cycle of content, feedback, and community growth.

Machine Learning - “Rock Paper Scissors”

In regards to ML, Juarez describes it as “you [giving] it the answers and the input and it figures out how to solve the problem.” He did a live demonstration of this using rock, paper, scissors. Using code that he already made, Juarez holds his hand up to the camera in the typical shapes for rock, paper, and scissors. In response to this, the program identifies his hand shapes as either rock, paper, or scissors. Every time the program gets “confused” as to what he’s displaying, Juarez clicks on buttons labeled either rock, paper, or scissors in order to “feed” it more examples of what a rock, paper, or scissors looks like. “Machine learning is the process where we give the machine examples of the right thing and it figures it out,” Juarez says.

The service he uses for this is Custom Vision – which Microsoft provides. Using Custom Vision and the examples given to it, Juarez can train the model for accuracy. He says that “all of machine learning forces you to put things into what is called vector space, and then you do basically linear algebra and calculus over it.” Breviu says that “the inferencing takes a lot less resources than the training and so the training is not happening locally on this machine; it's happening in the cloud using this tool and the inferencing he’s doing locally.” Breviu also suggests Custom Vision as a great pre-built tool to use for learning more about building Custom Vision models.

A Goal To Build Something to Automate Laborious Tasks

When Breviu first got started in this field, she tried a lot of things. She thought that the hardest part was finding the first development role. “I find that sometimes smaller companies are easier to get started in,” Breviu says. At the time, she was a data analyst and had a lot of experience in Excel. Because the tasks were repetitive, Breviu decided to automate them. “I think the best way to learn and stay motivated is having a goal,” she says. For everything she wanted to build or learn, Breviu would set a goal for herself – not stopping until she got there. Breviu took some classes at a community college in order to learn more about the object-oriented aspects. In regards to being self-taught without a curriculum, Breviu says that “you don’t know what you don’t know” so being able to have different resources was really helpful for her.

To start with a goal in mind, Breviu recommends breaking it down into smaller steps and solving those individually. Breviu got involved in the tech field through working in tech support for a while and later moving into a business analyst position – helping design future upgrades. When it came to getting her first developer job, a recruiter called about quality assurance (QA) job and Breviu took the interview. She said that she was interested in being a developer but could also do (QA), so in a second interview they did more of a “developer interview”. Breviu ended up being QA for 3-4 months and moved into her developer role. “There’s so many different non-traditional paths,” Breviu says. “Once you get some of that experience, that’s when it becomes less important about your degree.” Although degrees and education are helpful in finding a job, most recruiters are looking for developers and aren’t necessarily looking at degrees or education, they’re focusing on experiences. Breviu says that she “learned a lot just by getting in the atmosphere”.

ML, AI and XR Opportunities in Education

The role ML and AI play in helping students learn and explore at home is a growing one, and Juarez suggests that one way these could be incorporated together is by training a model to check if a student is understanding a lesson during class by recognizing their facial expressions. Breviu thinks that education can become more revolutionized through XR, such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and more. “I see [VR] being a much bigger contributor to changing how we learn in a virtualized society,” Breviu says.

Overall, the panel discussed so much interesting and innovative information regarding ML and AI as well as their roles and applications in the real world. ML, AI, and so many other tools and technologies are on the rise in today’s society, especially in the classroom. During the current quarantine, schools are utilizing technology almost every day. ML, AI and XR technologies can revolutionize and transform future learning and teaching.

A Big thank you to Microsoft Cloud Advocates for speaking and sharing knowledge and to Umayr Sufi, Development Specialist for organizing and hosting this informative speaker event!

Microsoft ML/AI Speaker Event., Sept 30, 2020


EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.EqOpTech.org

The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.

Tackling College Admissions Amid COVID-19

By Alice Liu

The recent COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 brings lots of uncertainty and unpredictability for those applying to colleges. So many big changes are happening all at once, including the application process, testing, tours, student housing, and a lot more. Luckily, Kalven Goreal, a college advisor and professional writing coach, has answers to the questions of many students regarding college this year. Mr. Goreal’s presentation video clips and slide deck are shared at the end of this blog post.

The impact on college application plans

Goreal starts off the panel by discussing the general impact of this pandemic on college applications. While schools are unable to provide in-person on-campus tours and open houses, there are still many virtual options and tools out there to provide the best experience possible for prospective students.

Another big change is that many schools, such as the UC system, have gone test-optional. However, Goreal states that “it’s highly recommended if you can take a test to take the test” as it is still a major deciding factor in a college application.

Q&A – Impact on college application plans

How do I visit schools to determine the right-fit when campuses are closed? What’s your advice on campus touring during the pandemic?

Goreal: It’s going to be a challenge – you can’t. What you can do is try and get a virtual tour. A lot of schools can provide virtual tours. If they don’t already have them on their website somebody is probably making one as we speak for those campuses. If you can’t access a virtual tour and official one, there’s always Google Maps; there’s always Apple Maps; they have street views and they’re very accurate. People can get to know an area based on those resources but you’re gonna have to do the research.

How does pass/fail impact transcripts and admission chances?

Goreal: We can’t really compare apples to oranges but we can compare apples to apples. I’m sure a lot of people will receive pass scores versus the amount of people that get fail scores and so compared to last year – where there’s A B C D F – it’ll be more difficult to discern who got an A, who got a B, and who got a C but within your application there’s teacher recommendations, counselor letters, letters of reference, and you have essays to write. They get to know who you are and they’ll know if you worked very hard and you’re probably a successful student in that subject then not. I don’t think it’s really a concern too much as long as you’re involved and other people can say “yes, I was involved in class and I was a successful, curious student”.

How do I reshape my narrative when test scores are optional and extracurricular activities are going virtual?

Goreal: Excellent question. It’s going right to the meat and bones of the issues. Your essays have to be extremely expressive of what you’ve done during your high school years and the time before your high school years, how you’ve prepared as an individual for college – not necessarily just professionally but internally – how you work with other people, how you overcome challenges, and how you’ll do in the future to connect with resources that the college has to offer you. So outside of test scores there’s a lot to say. Extracurricular activities – you should have plenty of background experience to express what you’ve done and how deep you’ve gone into certain activities and if not, you’re gonna have to start reaching out to people immediately and thinking about what we can do during this time to make an impact in other people’s lives and to do something that’s memorable that can be shared.

How do I craft my story and showcase my portfolio (internships, capstone projects, community service, extracurricular activities)?

Goreal: This is extremely important. When you apply they’re going to ask a lot of students if there are gonna be links to share. Some do some don’t –– you should have a LinkedIn page and you should be active on social media sharing the activities you’ve done and the projects you’ve worked on with other people and how they’ve impacted other people. If you have something to share that’s presentable, then you put it out in professional channels and connect with other people. They’ll be impressed with what you’ve done and they might engage with you in projects that they’d like to accomplish as well. How would I craft a story? Well, that’s a very complicated question – it relates to your greatest impact and what you plan on doing in the future. When you go into college they would like for you to have a plan and they would like for you to execute it well with the resources that they’ve shared and you’ve probably expressed how you would use those resources ideally working with certain professors or researching certain topics. They expect you to showcase – much like a job application – how can you fit in right away and succeed? And that’s what you would express to them in your essays.

Will COVID-19 help or hurt the class of 2021 college prospects?

Goreal: It’s difficult for everyone. You’re neither better off nor worse off and you want to give something your best effort – that’s the most important thing regardless of how it may or may not have affected you. You want to be in control of what you can do and that’s putting in your best effort on your essays, your application process, and what you present to those schools.

As for college tours, Goreal suggests that it’ll be difficult to tour colleges if students don’t know what they’re aiming for. College prospects should start looking into their safety, target, and reach schools as well as figuring out which programs, clubs, or activities they want to be involved in. Goreal discusses anecdotes regarding his own journey as a high school student looking into colleges and talks about how he first started out Googling the surrounding area of colleges he was interested in. This is really useful especially if the location and environment of the schools are really important to the student. Goreal also emphasizes contacting students or alumni because they often have the most experience with the school and could provide good insight. Researching and reaching out to professors for certain majors is also a very useful approach to finding out more about certain programs and courses offered at colleges.

Because of the new pass/fail grading system introduced during the pandemic, Goreal states that there will be a lot of grade inflation in regards to most people getting a higher passing grade and less people getting a failing grade. Goreal says that the application process is when students must show who they really are and “unclump” themselves from those who got pass/fail grades in order to truly stand out. “The things that stand out are the classes you take, the initiative you take to educate yourself outside of school, and your activities outside of school,” Goreal states.

“As I always say, if it’s optional, it’s actually required. If you can do it, do it.” Goreal recommends that students should definitely take standardized tests if they’re able to even if schools are test-optional. According to the article “University of California system can no longer use SAT, ACT test results in admissions, judge rules” written by Alexa Mae Asperin on KRON4, the University of California (UC) school system will no longer be considering SAT and ACT test scores for the undergraduate admissions process. This is a big change for many students and may come as a surprise. However, essays are still a very critical part of the admissions process.

Crafting your story

Colleges are looking for certain traits in a potential student. By establishing an identity, building a narrative, and showcasing those skills in capstone projects, internships, extracurriculars, or community service, applicants are able to strengthen their application and show colleges who they are. Make sure to add in components regarding innovation, leadership, community involvement, teamwork, collaboration, problem solving, soft skills, and more.

When writing essays, it’s important to take note of certain requirements or limits based on each school’s application. For example, the UCs require 4 350-word essays, the Common Application has 1 650-word essay, and the majority of competitive schools require 1-3 essays with 100-700 words each. In general, students should expect 5-25+ prompts to answer for applications. Goreal’s advice for students preparing to write the UC essays is to have them first start out writing 1,000 words and then showing them how those 1,000 words can be rewritten into something shorter.

What colleges love to hear

“The level and depth of activity is the most important factor,” Goreal says. He suggests that students should showcase how involved they were in a certain club or activity and what their role was in it. Many students join too many clubs and are not specialized in a certain field they want to go in. Successful applicants usually commit to a handful of organizations, volunteer heavily for a few select causes, and truly hone in to specialize in a certain field of interest. Goreal also recommends having a blog in order to showcase any projects or levels of activity. By doing so, individuals are able to share what they’re involved in and accomplishments they’ve achieved.

Writing the essays

For UC essays, Goreal recommends choosing the prompts that relate and represent the individual’s story the best. In general, the topics that should be covered in application essays include experiences in A, B, and C, what to be pursued in college and why, what the individual does to help others, what a problem is that the individual solved, and how the individual will continue to grow and learn. However, don’t recycle the same/similar subject matter in the prompts as individuals need to have multiple activities that showcase passions in order to stand out.

During the current pandemic, a lot of students may write in their essays about how it has affected them. If an individual chooses to do that, Goreal advises to stand out. He advises against being negative and instead to focus on the positive effects of the pandemic. Don’t focus on the negatives, although mentioning them is okay. Goreal says that “you have to show how you’ve made the effort, you’ve been dedicated, you’ve persevered through the challenges, and you’ve wanted to see through your journey.”

An acronym Goreal came up with for creating a narrative is VIVID.

  • V: “vivid” – makes the reader sense a student’s illustration.

  • I: “interesting” – keeps the reader interested in the story.

  • V: “very”.

  • I: “informative” – 650 words means 650 words, inform as much as possible.

  • D: “descriptions” – describe all plans, emotions, results, and experiences.

The details that matter

Some important details that could really enhance an application process include having a LinkedIn page and being friends with teachers. Goreal strongly recommends setting up a LinkedIn page in order to connect with professionals and others in the field of interest in order to collaborate on projects or gain insight and advice. Becoming friends with teachers is also something that should be considered. By doing so, positive experiences can be gained and they’ll have more to write about on letters of recommendation.

As for when to apply to certain schools, there are 3 options: early decision, early action, and regular decision. Early decision is binding and students can only apply for 1 school with this while early action is not binding and students can apply for many schools with this. Goreal advocates for applying as early as possible.

Speaker Q&A

Most colleges will be test-optional for 2021 applicants. How heavily will these colleges weight test scores in their admissions process, as compared to before?

Goreal: Very heavily. If you have a test score to submit, hopefully it’s good. If it’s not, you can work on improving it. It is very heavily weighted – it’s a parameter that they can judge you by.

Some colleges are test-blind for 2021 applicants because of COVID. Is it possible to still communicate test scores to these colleges?

Goreal: No – that would be very frowned upon. Don’t do that – not even in your essays – because it’s like what are you trying to get across? They don’t want to see your test scores, they want to judge everybody fairly based on these other parameters. That will not represent your character well and it misrepresents your decision making.

Will spring 2020 pass/fail grades be weighted any differently vs a standard letter grading scale as used in other semesters?

Goreal: Absolutely – why not? It’s only a pass. It’s not an A, B, or C. But, how do you compare to other people? If they also got passes, don’t worry about it. It’s your trajectory that matters. All of your grades in whole, not just this moment right now. 

What common mistakes do you see kids or parents making as high schoolers prepare for the college admissions process?

Goreal: They’re not heavily involved in things, they’re taking things easy, they think just getting good grades is going to get them to the colleges that they hear about and want to go to. That’s not going happen – it’s super competitive. Even the students that I work with that are heavily involved and really putting in an effort because what else are you going to do? Waste your time? Do something! That’s the mistake.

What is the difference between getting a CS degree in a liberal arts school versus a more STEM-focused school?

Goreal: Fantastic. So for any degree major, an arts-based degree is going to go into the theories more so than the practical applications and the actual projects that you have to work on. There’s gonna be interdisciplinary work that you have to do. So for a STEM-focused school for a Bachelor of Science degree, rather than a Bachelor of Arts degree, you’re gonna be expected to use your knowledge in physics and mathematics and history, and other sciences and relate it to your subject matter that you’re majoring in. So be prepared to bring all of the goods. But for liberal arts, you’re not going to be as heavily involved as a science school but you will be studying a lot of the theory and researching a lot most likely.

I was wondering if I could please get your opinion on the current status of the SAT/SAT subject tests. Do you think College Board will provide an online alternative?

Goreal: I think currently they’re not providing anything for subject tests. They are planning to provide in-person testing for the SAT. The end of August and every month through the end of the year will be limiting testing sites. It’s probably going to be challenging. If you can, go for it. Subject tests – I don’t think they’re gonna offer online, digital versions because it’s so easy to cheat like that. They don’t want cheaters to get high scores. It makes the hard workers get low scores.

How many colleges would you recommend applying to this year given the uncertainty of COVID?

Goreal: I always tell students to apply to as many colleges as they can apply to. Of course that’s what I do – I help students apply to colleges so ideally I’m helping you apply to as many schools as you would hope to apply to. I have students that make lists of 20 schools. In the end they end up applying to 6-12 of those schools and that’s grouping the UCs all as one. So 6-12 is a pretty fair number. 12 is very high. 6 is pretty good. 8 is a lot and good.

Do you believe admissions will be made more difficult this year due to COVID deferrals?

Goreal: I think actually for a lot of the academic and studious students, it’ll be easier to get into the schools that you’ve wanted to get into because a lot of activities are being cut and those activities require high specialization like football for example. It takes a lot of work to compete at the highest levels and if they’re not providing scholarships to a lot of students, at certain times, it does open up places in colleges where they will accept students that will be studying either online or locally in what the case may be. It depends on what group you’re in but overall, if you’ve done a good job and you can show that, then they’ll want you, but if you can’t show that, they probably won’t want you regardless of the situation.

Student panel Q&A

The student panel consists of:

Sarah Yung

Sarah Yung

Kevin Gao

Kevin Gao

Zosia Stafford

Zosia Stafford

  • Sarah Yung, rising freshman at Northwestern University, Media/Communications Lead for EqOpTech, 2019-2020

  • Kevin Gao, rising sophomore at UC Berkeley, President of EqOpTech, 2018-2019

  • Zosia Stafford, rising junior at Tufts University, EqOpTech LAHS club member

What was the biggest surprise for you during the admission process?

Yung: For me there were honestly a lot more essays than I expected. Besides the personal statement for the Common App and the 4 essays for the UC system, most colleges will have a few supplemental essays and when you apply to a lot of colleges those add up. On the flip side, I was actually able to “recycle” a lot of my essays with just a few revisions so that made it a lot more manageable.

Gao: I thought it was pretty difficult to write an admission essay. In English classes, writing a 10-page research paper or something like 2,000 words, I can crunch out in maybe a few hours. For something like a 300-word essay on the college apps, it is surprisingly hard to write one of those.

Stafford: One thing I found surprising was just how helpful it was to talk to other students. I definitely would recommend if you can get in contact with anyone at any of the schools to do so. Also I think, being on the flip side of it, when I was applying to schools, I was very very nervous to ask random people questions so for most schools I really didn’t, but being an actual college student I think we’re all really eager to help you and to answer any of your questions. Definitely reach out.

What aspects of college tours were helpful/not helpful?

Yung: Personally I liked talking to the student guides because they could tell me about opportunities that I might not have thought to look for. At Northwestern, when I did the tour, I was told about this program where you can take your professor out to lunch and get to know them and I thought that was something really cool that I probably wouldn’t have looked into otherwise. Unhelpful – a lot of admissions representatives try to present the school’s best foot forward and a lot of them will say pretty generic things. Just keep in mind whether you’re really gonna be happy there.

Gao: This might be an unpopular opinion, but I didn’t really find college tours useful. Most of my classes at school now are in 2-3 buildings in total and the tour shows us much more. Basically a lot of places we never get to actually go to. I think the most useful part of the tour for me was visiting parts outside of campus such as restaurants, dorms, things like that – like student life.

Stafford: I’d say that the most important or helpful part of a college tour is the Q&A section. A lot of the tour guides are gonna be giving you a lot of facts and things that are fairly easy to find online so I’d recommend trying to think of some questions to ask that you can really only gain answers when you’re there. In addition to a college tour, I’d recommend, if possible, to try to sit in on a class. I think that it can give you a lot of insight into classroom dynamics and interactions. It’s probably even easier to do now that it’s all online. I’ve found that really helpful.

Tell us about your college experience so far. (Kevin & Zosia)

Gao: There’s a lot of freedom in finding the right balance from all your activities – just something you don’t get to do in high school as much. The biggest thing is obviously academics. It’s harder, it’s more work, and when I’m busy with tests, or what we call midterm season, some Saturdays and Sundays I’m in the library from 11AM to 2AM the whole day aside from dinner. The work is a lot more interesting so for me, it doesn’t feel too bad. Libraries are really important. A lot of people go there to study and I feel that study groups are not essential, but they’re much more helpful in college. Unlike with high school, it’s a lot harder to study by yourself in certain classes. Another aspect of college I really liked is intramural sports. I feel like high school, if you’re not competitive, you can't really join the team, but if you just wanna play for fun there’s a lot of other people that also want to in college. Lastly, the dorm experience for me was probably my favorite part of college. I was very lucky to have good floormates but sadly we only get it for 1 year.

Stafford: I’d say I’m definitely really enjoying my college experience so far. It was a bit of an adjustment from high school – I think in high school I knew most people in the school and going to Tufts I really knew nobody so it’s definitely a bit of an adjustment to find your friend groups. I think clubs and organizations really really help with that to kind of get into a really nice group of friends. I’d say academic-wise, it’s pretty different where you have a lot less classes but a lot more work and there’s very little busywork so you might have less assignments but it’s all very important. Time management is kind of key for that. I’d also say I really enjoyed the opportunity to just explore college classes. You’re able to take classes at a higher caliber and it’s really nice to be able to explore that and to take advantage as much as you can of the cool classes that you see in addition to your major classes. I’d also say I really enjoyed getting to both know my classmates but also getting to know my professors. I think it’s really valuable to go to office hours and to kind of develop closer relationships to your professors so you can maybe get involved in their research or even just get to know them as people. I’ve really enjoyed college so far – I think it’s been really good.

How difficult was it to get your classes? (Kevin & Zosia)

Gao: This is college-specific and major-specific. I’m a CS major and getting my major classes was pretty easy mainly because a lot of our CS classes have over 1,000 people in it just because they’re online. General education classes are harder to get but they don’t really matter as much because you’re only taking it for the requirements so not too many people actually care about them as much.

Stafford: So this is very major-specific. I’m in mechanical engineering at Tufts and at Tufts at least, it’s not very difficult to get into your classes because all engineering students get to register first. The way that the registering order goes is senior engineers, junior engineers, and regular seniors in arts and sciences. So we kind of get first dibs on classes, which is really nice. You’re pretty much just competing with other engineering students. There’s definitely some competition but it mostly comes from getting the class time that you want or getting the professor that you want. Also, at least in mechanical engineering, we have one set track, so all the mechanical engineering students take the same classes every semester so you’re mostly just competing with people in your class who want the same classes. But even when it comes down to that, I find that professors are pretty flexible; this coming semester I didn’t get a time that I wanted and I just emailed the professor and asked if I could get let into the class and he was like “yeah sure that’s fine”. Most of the major-specific classes are a little bit smaller at around 30 people, so it’s easier to be flexible about them.

What do you do in your free time?

Yung: During quarantine, I’ve been getting into making music. I’m learning the ukulele, I’m playing piano, I sing, I’m also just learning more math and science on MIT OpenCourseWare and good YouTube videos and cool Wiki pages.

Gao: On weekdays, homework was basically half of my free time but I also joined 3 clubs: badminton club, an academic one for sports analytics, and a fellowship. Mainly, aside from that, I would spend time with my floormates playing boardgames or just talking to each other. On weekends, my clubs would host parties sometimes, I would play frisbee on the weekends with my fellowship, and the most obvious one is just videogames to chill on the weekends.

Stafford: I’m involved in a couple of engineering-specific things. I’m in the Society of Women Engineers, I’m the vice president of the Make Club where we just get together and make cool things, and I also work at Nolop which is one of the makerspace and machine shops on campus. I spend a lot of my time helping people build things and getting people instructed on the tools and stuff like that. I’m also involved among the Interfaith Student Council so I represent Hillel and Chabad and some of the other Jewish organizations on campus. I also play in the pep band and I play the trumpet and we perform at all the football games. I spend a lot of time just baking and cooking and making bread.

Are there any new classes or subjects that you were surprised to love?

Yung: I really enjoyed taking microeconomics in my senior year. I’m super into math and science and I didn’t really expect to enjoy a social science class that much.

Gao: I didn’t really know data science too well before high school just because you don’t have classes on it. I did know I was kind of interested in it so I took 1 or 2 classes this year and I really liked them so it’s probably going to be my second major now.

Stafford: I absolutely recommend exploring things and seeing what you love. In the fall during my freshman year, I decided to take a course in intro to ethics because I really liked English but I’d passed out of freshman English so I just wanted a class where I’d get to write a paper. I just absolutely loved it and now I’m double majoring in philosophy. That was really great and very unexpected. Last year I was also able to take a class in ceramics at the art school at Tufts and I just had a wonderful time and now I have a lot of cool new mugs and bowls.

How many colleges did you apply to, and what was the ratio of reach to realistic schools?

Yung: I applied to 16 colleges – grouping all the UCs into one. I had about a half-half ratio of reach to realistic schools and I applied to 6 colleges early action.

Gao: I had 20 schools if you count each UC separately, 7 safeties, 7 targets, and 6 reaches so it’s about one-third for each.

Stafford: I had 15, if you count the UCs as one, and 20 if you count all of them and I had a ratio of about 25% safety, 30% realistic, and 45% reach.

When did you start your college applications? How much time did you spend on your essays?

Yung: I started working on my essays in mid-summer or early July. I worked sort of on and off for those, especially when school started, so I’d spend maybe 2 or 3 hours a week on them. It sort of varied for each essay. Some of them were really easy to write and some of them were more challenging so I usually finished them within a month by doing 2-3 hours a week. I started my supplementals in late September and I was able to usually finish a college per 1-2 weeks.

Gao: I actually started in early October which is really bad since I also had 5 EDs or EAs due at the end of the month so I was really not in a good spot. It was actually Kalven who helped me with brainstorming and revising a lot of the essays and getting through multiple drafts. I don’t know how long I spent on each one exactly. – I just know that there were many many drafts for each.

Stafford: I started with my Common App, which most of it I did the summer before junior year. By early junior year I had the Common App question pretty much all done and then I just was refining my college list. I started the supplementals I think kind of over the summer or early senior year and basically just had to have at least 1 or 2 new drafts every week. Each essay probably had 3-5 different revisions of it. I don’t know exactly how much time I spent for each but probably like 5 or 6 hours for each essay.

Did you get waivers for your AP classes?

Yung: A lot of Northwestern’s classes are actually determined by placement tests so I have had to take a chem placement test, a math placement test, and I’ll be taking physics placement once I’m on campus. Qualifying for physics, I had to get a 5 on the E&M exam but I’m pretty sure Northwestern didn’t let us get a lot of waivers for our classes based on AP credit.

Gao: I know a lot of friends who were able to skip a lot of classes from their APs like physics, chemistry, stuff like that. For me at my school, it’s just Calculus and English, but I’m still able to save a full semester from that.

Stafford: For Tufts for the School of Engineering, you need mostly 5s for all of your APs and some 4s to get credit. I was able to pass out of freshman English, Calc 1, Chem 1&2, and then my AP Bio counted for a Natural Science class. I had the option where I could’ve passed out of Physics 1, but I decided I would probably benefit more from taking it again so I decided to do that.


College Talk & Student Panel Q&A Video Clips & Slide Deck

Introduction, featuring Kalven Goreal, College Advisor

Covid impact on college application & testing
College Tour during the pandemic
Pass/Fail, Test Optional Impact on College Admission
Reshape my Narrative
Building my Portfolio
Crafting the VIVID Essays
Social Media Skills
Speaker Q&A - Kalven Goreal

Student Discussion Panel Q&A

Special Thank You by Trevor Smith, Contact Info

College Application amid COVID-19 Slide Deck

College Application amid COVID-19 Slide Deck


EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.EqOpTech.org

The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.

EqOpTech Virtual Tech Workshop - How to Replace Hard Drives

By Sydney Tung

Image Credit: Lyn Swyryd-Smith

Image Credit: Lyn Swyryd-Smith

On July 22, 2020, EqOpTech hosted a virtual tech workshop for computer interns and volunteers learning how to refurbish donated laptops. The workshop features Trevor Smith, President of EqOpTech who will demonstrate how to replace hard drives and add memories for different types of laptops. 

Smith kicked off the meeting showcasing the materials, the different laptops he will be demonstrating, Dell PCs, Macbook, RAM memory, SATA and solid state drives (SSD). In this workshop, our student interns will learn the following:

  • put in a new SATA or SSD as donors, often companies policies require them to physically destroy hard drives prior to donation

  • add RAM to the memory slot to meet school’s requirement

  • reinstall Windows operating system with a product key

  • recover missing product key

  • wipe clean hard drives with DBAN

Materials: 

Replacing hard drives and add memories for laptops by Trevor Smith

64 Screwdriver bit kit (or a small-sized screwdriver) 

Replacing Hard Drives:

Dell Latitude - 2010 

Start by unscrewing the screws on the bottom right-hand corner of the computer. Make sure to keep all of the screws organized as they are removed! Then slide out the tray with the hard drive and separate it by unscrewing the latch that is on the side. Finally, reassemble the computer by reversing the steps. 

Bigger version of Dell Latitude 2010 

The screw orientation is different but the steps are the same as above. 

Macbook 2010

There are two tabs located on the computer, pull those and the battery should pop out, exposing the interior screws. Unscrew the screws, keeping them organized, and remove the protective metal. Then, the memory should appear, pull the two tabs on the slide to remove it. Next, remove the Torx screws which are hexagonal, and unscrew all of the remaining screws. Once all of the screws are removed, turn the computer around and open it from the top; be careful when dealing with the interior of the computer. Next, in the bottom left-hand corner, gently remove any obstructions to the hard drive. Pull out the SATA ribbon cable and replace the hard drive by aligning the SATA ports and plugging the ribbon cables back. Finally, close the computer back up and re-screw everything.  

Memory

Windows and PC

First, unscrew the two screws at the bottom edge of the computer to access the memory. Pull on the two tabs on the side and that will release the memory (there are two). Then reverse the process to replace the memory. 

Windows/PC Number 2

Remove the screws (same ones as before), pull on the tabs on the edge and remove it. Then unscrew all of the remaining screws and open the computer up. Locate the memory and remove it by pulling on the two tabs to release it. 

Q&A and web resources: 

What is the difference between hard drives and Solid State Drives (SSD)?

  • SSDs are faster, newer, last longer, thinner, and less expensive than hard drives 

  • They both connect to the same slots 

Wiping hard drives and factory resets

Can you use DBAN to clear hard drives? https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-wipe-a-hard-drive-2624527

What is the best way to preserve the product key when wiping the hard drive?

  • Depends on the computer, but usually, with Dell, the product key can be found underneath the battery on a sticker. Trevor says to take a picture of the product key in case the battery power runs out during the clean install.

  • Magical Jellybean product lookup or Produkey can also help to find the product key. https://www.wikihow.com/Check-Your-Windows-Product-Key

EqOpTech team would like to thank Trevor Smith for an informative tech workshop. The session has been recorded and shared with students in this post. For further questions, please reach out to Trevor via Slack.


EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.EqOpTech.org

The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.

EqOpTech Narrows the Digital Divide Amid COVID-19

By Sarah Yung

On February 1st, a man in Santa Clara County tested positive for COVID-19, the first confirmed case in the Bay Area. COVID-19 belongs to the coronavirus family, which includes SARS, MERS and the common cold. Symptoms include fever, cough, shortness of breath, and headaches/body aches. Visit here for CDC guidance on COVID-19 symptoms and testing.

COVID-19 is highly contagious - 3 times more contagious than the flu.  Not everybody who contracts coronavirus displays symptoms, but asymptomatic people can still spread coronavirus to others. Experts hope to slow the spread of the virus via social distancing - a conscious effort to reduce close contact between people. Doing so will reduce strain on the hospital system and free up medical resources - like ventilators - to patients who need them most.

Photo credit: Lisa Guerra

Photo credit: Lisa Guerra

All constituents are responding to COVID-19 differently. As a high schooler, I first felt the effects when mass gatherings like debate tournaments and the Key Club District Convention were cancelled. The NBA suspended the 2019-20 season, just as the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League (SCVAL) suspended high school spring sports. Soon after, the MVLA Board of Trustees decided to close schools for three weeks, joining the ranks of Bay Area schools like the San Francisco Unified School District, Oakland Unified District, and San Mateo Union High School District.

In order to flatten the COVID-19 curve that will overwhelm the hospital system, public health officials announced that all public schools in Santa Clara county will be closing for three weeks beginning March 16th.  Soon after, California governor Gavin Newsom ordered a statewide shelter-in-place. Students now find themselves having to adjust to distance learning, using online platforms like Zoom and Google Classroom. However, according to the 2018 census data, 15% of Bay Area households have no internet access and 4% have no access to computers. This means about 1 million students lack tech access, which is critical to online learning.

EqOpTech, a Los Altos nonprofit, is helping schools prepare for online classes by deploying refurbished laptops for students to use at home to access online learning tools. So far, we have distributed 229 Chromebooks to 7 schools - including Landels Elementary School, Santa Rita Elementary School, Theuerkauf Elementary School, and Vargas Elementary School. These laptops, refurbished by EqOpTech student interns, will enable students to access online classrooms while schools are closed.

Join Us

EqOpTech is a virtual company, which means we are well-prepared for remote working. Using tools like Slack, GSuite, and Youtube to collaborate, EqOpTech makes it easy for new interns to be a part of the company, while learning technical skills and gaining meaningful work experience. In times of crisis, we are always seeking students who would like to step up and give back to the community. For more information on our internship program, click here.

The hard work of our interns and volunteers is only one half of the solution. We are seeking functioning laptops (Windows, Mac & Chromebooks) with appropriate power adapters to provide students with tech access at home. Each laptop will be refurbished to its full functionality with the operating system and removal of all personal data. Donated laptops will be redeployed to at-risk students in the Bay Area. All donations are tax-deductible. Tax receipt will be provided upon request.

  
Reach us at Contact@EqOpTech.org for donations or questions.


About EqOpTech

EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.EqOpTech.org

The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.



EqOpTech in 2019

By Sarah Yung

Take a look back at the events of 2019!


Dear Friends and Supporters of EqOpTech,

2019 was full of milestones for EqOpTech - from the largest laptop deployment ever to the influx of new interns, this year saw EqOpTech rise to new heights of success. The amazing support from the community has allowed us to expand our reach and dream big for the future!

In April, we had our first laptop deployments, kicking off a busy year for EqOpTech. Although interns faced some technical issues with the laptops, they successfully deployed over 100 laptops to East Palo Alto and Monta Loma students.

We received three batches of computer donation in June from CBS KPIX 5, the Los Altos School District (“LASD”), and the Mountain View-Whisman School District (“MVWSD”). We also began training the new interns, teaching them how to refurbish computers and restore them to their original functionality. During the two orientations, experienced interns acted as mentors, helping new members learn the ropes.

In November, we had our laptop deployment at Mariano Castro Elementary School, the biggest laptop deployment EqOpTech has ever undertaken. The deployment was featured in both the Los Altos Town Crier and the Los Altos High School Talon. The EqOpTech team learned valuable lessons from this deployment for the future.

None of this work would be possible without the generosity of our donors and partners, including CBS KPIX 5, MVWSD, LASD and Sunday Friends. We would also like to thank our interns for a year of tireless service, bringing technology access to everyone in the Silicon Valley! 

Thank you for an incredible year! Join us as we look back on the remarkable achievements and memorable events of 2019.

Sincerely,

Sarah YungPublic Relations

Sarah Yung

Public Relations


The Mission

EqOpTech-Mission.jpg

EqOpTech-Timeline-2.jpg

Growing Up

New Interns

23 new members joined the EqOpTech family this year! Our interns come from schools all around Silicon Valley, including:

  • Los Altos High School

  • Mountain View High School

  • Prospect High School

  • Saratoga High School

  • Archbishop Mitty High School

  • Foothill College

Interns Graph.png

Generous Donors include:

March 15 - 83 Chromebooks from Santa Rita Elementary School

May 21 - 25 Chromebooks from Oak Elementary School

June 3  - 30 MacBook Pros from CBS KPIX 5

June 10 - 1500 Chromebooks and 50 iMacs from MVWSD

December - 36 Dell/Lenovo Windows laptops from Silicon Valley Companies

Our donation program engages the community in our equal access mission. The donations allowed us to organize a deployment for MVWSD students. With the backlog, we also anticipate a major deployment at Theuerkauf Elementary School in 2020. 

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Deployments

Over 2019, EqOpTech donated over 400 laptops to local students. Access to technology allows students to access valuable educational tools like STMath, Lexia Core 5 Reading, and Khan Academy. By providing students with laptops, EqOpTech empowers young students to enrich their own academic experience and achieve great success.

Mariano Castro Elementary School

On November 22, EqOpTech donated 258 Chromebooks to Castro students. This was the largest deployment EqOpTech has ever held, thanks to our generous donors and hard-working interns.

This event was publicized in local news. You can find articles about this deployment in the LAHS Talon and the Los Altos Town Crier.

East Palo Alto and Monta Loma

In April, EqOpTech deployed 56 Chromebooks to East Palo Alto students. Later that month, EqOpTech deployed 70 MacBooks and Chromebooks to Monta Loma students.

Interns Cedric Chan (left) and Kevin Gao (right) with a Monta Loma laptop recipient

Interns Cedric Chan (left) and Kevin Gao (right) with a Monta Loma laptop recipient

Other Deployments

EqOpTech has also held numerous smaller deployments to local organizations and schools. Elementary schools include Theuerkauf, Huff, Bubb, Santa Rita, Stevenson, and Edith Landels. EqOpTech also deployed laptops to Los Altos High School and Sunday Friends, a nonprofit organization operating out of San Jose.


Tech Talks & Workshops

Talks

June 22 - Volunteer Orientation 1

In the first orientation, EqOpTech Founder, Terence Lee demonstrated a series of operating system installation using the VirtualBox. After brief introductions, volunteers learned how to install computer software like Windows 10, CloudReady, Linux Ubuntu, and Lubuntu. More experienced volunteers acted as guides while new interns learned how to powerwash and update a Chromebook, the basic unit in EqOpTech’s November deployment. They also learned about the resources they had access to while working at home, like Slack, where they could access the knowledge of volunteers and mentors. At the end of the meeting, volunteers were able to check out computers to work on at home.

June 29 - Volunteer Orientation 2

The second orientation focused primarily on computer hardware. Terence Lee covered “Parts of a Computer” and led an interactive Firewire demo, a technique that EqOpTech adopted to revive MacBooks with defective CD drives. This was followed by a simple laptop architecture & I/O ports talk by Hing Lee, Founder/CEO of Search411. Mr. Lee highlighted the uniqueness of the EqOpTech internship program; EqOpTech’s “learning-by-doing” approach empowers students to pursue STEM opportunities in their education and career. 

Students also learned about successes of previous interns and the different projects they can engage with through EqOpTech. At the end of the meeting, volunteers were able to check out or swap out more computers to work on at home.

EqOpTech interns gather for a picture with the computer hardware at a hands-on workshop and orientation.

EqOpTech interns gather for a picture with the computer hardware at a hands-on workshop and orientation.

July 6 - Artificial Intelligence Talk

Willie Lim, Development Architect at SAP Labs, came in to talk to interns about Artificial Intelligence (AI). A fairly informal talk, Mr. Lim discussed the applications and practical usage of AI in the world around us. Through this talk, interns got exposure to someone who has a career in computer science, giving them a taste of what it would be like to work in industry.

July 20 - College Preparation Talk and Student Panel

The college preparation talk and student panel discussion was geared towards high school juniors and seniors. Kalven Goreal, a professional writing coach, gave a presentation on how to prepare to apply for college. Then, EqOpTech alumni Terence Lee and Kevin Gao joined us for a student panel, keeping them connected to the EqOpTech community through engaging them in mentorship. 

Computer Refurbishing Workshops

EqOpTech hosted a series of Refurbishing Workshops over the summer to provide hands-on training (with Macs, Chromebooks, Windows, etc.) by installing operating systems, partitioning hard disks, and other skills.

After learning the skills, they worked independently at home or at the school club to refurbish computers. Refurbishing old computers keeps them from becoming electronic waste. Instead, they go to students who need them at our laptop deployments.

In addition to workshops at The View Teen center, the EqOpTech club at LAHS runs monthly refurbishing events. These workshops engage students, helping them gain technical skills and meaningful work experience while giving back to the community.

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Our Achievements

President’s Volunteer Service Award - 2018

  • Eric Che, Saratoga HS, Gold Award

  • Kevin Gao, Los Altos HS, Gold Award

  • Nate Latif, Los Altos HS, Bronze Award

  • Daniel Lim, Los Altos HS, Gold Award

  • Trevor Smith, Los Altos HS, Gold Award

EqOpTech celebrates the achievements of its volunteers. To receive this award, our interns spent over 1,000 hours volunteering. We can’t wait to see what our team achieves in 2020!

2018 interns pose with their awards

2018 interns pose with their awards

Research-Based Tech Projects

In June/July, technical interns Bill Shao, Roman Black, Artin Davari conducted a research-based project to test-drive top 10 lightweight Linux distributions for older laptops and/or troubleshoot problematic laptops. Bill Shao summarized all findings, ranking the Linux OS ease-of-use and sustainability by installation, navigation and use, applications and internet browser access, and support. Bill is also taking on another initiative to develop an asset management application using an open-source tool called Snipe-IT.

EqOpTech Intranet

In August, we launched the EqOpTech intranet - a project spearheaded by intern Maya Yung. The intranet serves as a “hitchhiker’s guide” for new interns, storing useful resources such as tutorials on how to write a news article, organize a laptop drive, tools for the refurbishing process, and a forum to ask questions and collaborate on.

Resources provided through the intranet empower interns to take initiative within EqOpTech. By giving them the tools for success, we hope interns will fulfill the Students Helping Students mission of EqOpTech.

Digital Marketing and Media

Interns Justin Chou and Joshua Kung spearheaded the digital marketing team. From designing flyers for EqOpTech’s events to various editing projects, Justin and Joshua produced content cultivating EqOpTech’s digital presence. At the Castro deployment, Justin and Joshua were the video and photography team, documenting the night’s events through photos and recording our interviews. Check out the flyer for our MVWSD free laptop program here.

Together with Alice Liu and Sarah Yung, leading the public relations team, these interns spread the word about our tech program in the local community. Their projects include producing blogs of EqOpTech events and designing marketing collateral for our tech program.

AI Research Articles

In August and September, interns Alice Liu and Sarah Yung released a series of articles focusing on research into Artificial Intelligence (AI) - computer systems that can mimic human intelligence. From personalized learning to smart medicine, these articles offer a glimpse into the exciting developments in computer science.

The blogging project empowered interns to conduct their own research projects, culminating in a publication that observed the topic from multiple perspectives. In doing so, they not only developed the research skills to learn about a complex topic, but also learned the skills to write about it in an understandable manner.

Daisy is Heading to College

During her four years at Los Altos High School, Daisy found her dream of becoming a media manager. The laptop program at LAHS helped her succeed during high school, but she still had to return the laptop once she graduated. Daisy knew that pursuing her majors in business and journalism would be greatly benefited by having a laptop.

Through the Refurbished Laptops for College-Bound Seniors program, Daisy received a laptop that would help her through her college experience. We are excited to see where postsecondary education takes her!


Testimonials

What difference does a Laptop make?

“Thank you so much for this computer. It is really amazing and you have done such a great job to fix it and I will be so proud to take it home with me soon. Since my older sister has her computer to work on her homework, it has been hard to work on mine. This computer will be really useful for me to work on my homework. Thank you again for this computer and all the hard work you put into it. Also thank you for doing this for others and helping lots of other people.” -Natalie, Almond Elementary School

“Sunday Friends and my family would like to thank EqOpTech for fixing laptops and tablets and donating them for kids. My children learn so much by using the tablets.” -Nubia Tellez, Sunday Friends’ family

“I am excited about the opportunity to work with EqOpTech to ensure access for students without a computer at home, there is a high overlap between low-income students and those who don’t have a laptop at home,” Castro Principal Theresa Lambert said in an interview with Los Altos Town Crier. “Technology isn’t required to complete homework. However, students use laptops at school and teachers use a variety of online tools. Students who received a laptop from EqOpTech will now be able to access many of those tools at home.”

How do students help students?

“I joined EqOpTech as an intern in 2016. Since then, our team has refurbished hundreds of donated laptops and organized a few laptop drives [...], approaching principals and IT specialists for donations of their outdated Macbooks and Chromebooks that were no longer in use.” Daniel Lim, student President said in the Los Altos Town Crier Students Voice article. “Students can now do research and complete their online homework with the refurbished laptops. We also rolled out STEM education programs at Sunday Friends to teach children how to use the technology for online STEM classes  so that they can break the poverty cycle.”

“To problem solve and have the ability — the computer knowledge — to wipe out a computer and have it available so it’s really ready, that’s quite an incredible feat,” Santa Rita Elementary School Principal Greg Land said in an interview with CBS KPIX 5


Take Action

Together, we can do so much more! See how you can get involved:

Visit us. Check out our website at www.EqOpTech.org to learn about our projects and upcoming events.

Volunteer with us. Become an intern to gain valuable technical and leadership skills in a meaningful way. Apply here.

Refurbish computers and restore them to their original functionality through our Computer-in-a-Box Project

Charter a club. Email Lucy@EqOpTech.org for more information on our school clubs and activities.

Donate computers that will go towards future deployments to enrich students’ educations. E-mail Donate@EqOpTech.org.

Share our mission. Get the word out about our programs and get people excited about the opportunities EqOpTech creates.

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EqOpTech Inc.

We are a registered 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit, all donations are tax deductible. 

Tel: 650.254.6618 Email: Contact@EqOpTech.org

To contact the writer: Sarah@EqOpTech.org

See the attached files to download our 2019 annual report!


Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.

2017 Jefferson Award for Public Service recipient

2018 Daily Point of Light Award recipient

The President’s Volunteer Service Award, certifying organization

U.S. Congressional Award, partner and ambassador


EqOpTech Deploys Refurbished Laptops at Mariano Castro Elementary School

By Sarah Yung, EqOpTech Intern

As the sun set last Friday, most high school students were relaxing at home after a long week. At Castro Elementary School, a group of students was preparing for a laptop deployment - hauling out boxes of refurbished Chromebooks, preparing paperwork, reviewing what to tell the recipient families. After assembling for a quick debrief and pizza dinner, the EqOpTech laptop deployment was up and running.

Castro students access personalized digital module through their Clever accounts using refurbished Chromebooks from EqOpTech

Castro students access personalized digital module through their Clever accounts using refurbished Chromebooks from EqOpTech

The Largest EqOpTech Laptop Deployment

Laptop Deployment Event - the growing line at 6:30 pm, November 22, 2019 outside the Multi-Purpose Room, Castro School

Laptop Deployment Event - the growing line at 6:30 pm, November 22, 2019 outside the Multi-Purpose Room, Castro School

At 300 expected laptops, the Castro deployment was the biggest deployment EqOpTech had ever run. Our growing volunteer base and the generous donations from donors who made the deployment possible. The quickly-growing line at 5:30 outside the Multi-Purpose Room showed that the larger deployment was well-received. Just an hour later, a line of families stretched from the Multi-Purpose Room out to the parking lot. 

After checking in and filling out some basic paperwork, students received a Chromebook and were then directed to a volunteer station, where they would be guided through the process of setting up their Clever account. Through their Clever account, students can access a variety of educational tools, including Lexia Core 5 Reading, Khan Academy and STMath.

I met Angie, a first grader at Castro, while waiting for a volunteer to help her set up her Clever account. She hugged her computer and smiled shyly for the camera - the first photo of the evening. Soon after, she was directed to a station in the wings of the stage, where she got her computer up and running.

Personalized Digital Learning Tech Access for Enriched Education

Later in the evening, I met the lively third grader Milagros. She would, of course, use the computer for “doing homework.” She eagerly tapped away on the laptop while her parents asked the volunteer a few more questions. She showed me the website STMath, which they used in school. “Do you like math class?” I asked. She nodded faintly, already absorbed in a multiplication game. 

All the kids were delighted to receive their Chromebooks. At one station, a student carefully wrote down his login information while his parents took a picture, just in case. Across the room, another student carefully perused all the profile pictures before he finally settled on a cute cat profile picture. At the station I was hovering around, one girl showed her friend how to set the background on Chrome to a picture of a galaxy.

Students weren’t the only ones excited about the laptops. “Do we get to keep these?” one parent asked. “Yes, you do get to keep these,” a volunteer patiently explained, “I can show you how to set up your own account on the computer.” Both turned back to the computer and got back to work.

Castro families bring refurbished Chromebooks home to do homework

Castro families bring refurbished Chromebooks home to do homework

As a line of families built up, snaking around the edges of the Multi Purpose Room, volunteers took on more and more responsibility. At full swing, each volunteer was working with 2 to 3 families at once. Volunteers quickly passed sheets with log-in information between stations and stretched the power cords as far as they could go. Despite the limited manpower and resources, the volunteers helped every family, ultimately sending home 220 laptops.


Meaningful Work Experience = Technical Skills + Problem Solving

At the end of the evening, the student volunteers took a quick team photo on the stage. Afterwards, the group of exhausted teens cleaned up. Daniel Lim, the student president, rounded up the team for a quick debriefing. “There was a lot of people,” one student chimed in. Others around the circle echoed the sentiment, nodding in agreement. In the spirit of continuous improvement, the team considered what went well and where there was room for improvement, such as implementing more quality control checks and setting up the Clever accounts ahead of time to accelerate the deployment process. 

Castro Laptop Deployment Volunteer Team, photo credit - Joshua Kung

Castro Laptop Deployment Volunteer Team, photo credit - Joshua Kung

For most of the volunteer interns, this was their first deployment and first year learning how to restore laptops to its full functionality, gaining not only valuable technical skills but also analytical skills to problem-solve many unexpected challenges. Through the deployment, interns like Maya, a rising freshman at LAHS, saw their hard work in refurbishing computers pay off. “Going to the deployment allowed me to see that my actions were helping others,” Maya told us. “It was especially wonderful to see the smiles on the kids' faces [...] and realizing that these computers would have a significant impact on their lives.” With EqOpTech, student volunteers learn valuable industry skills while giving back to the community. If you have a keen interest in technology, we invite you to come join us (apply here) and together we can make technology a resource for all.


About EqOpTech: EqOpTech provides easy access to computer hardware, software, and mentor support in STEM education. For more information, visit www.EqOpTech.org.  Visit here for the Castro Laptop Deployment Press Release. Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.

EqOpTech College Talk -- Featuring Kalven Goreal

By Alice Liu, Intern

As the years go on, it’s becoming harder and harder to get into certain colleges. The pressure of getting into a good college puts a lot of stress and work on a student’s shoulders and knowing tips and tricks that can help you get into the college of your dreams is very useful but sometimes hard to find. That’s where Kalven Goreal steps in. Goreal has been a professional writing coach since 2015 and is a lead write for high school and college student publications. Through his years working with and tutoring students, he has gained a lot of insight on the things students need to know while getting ready to apply for colleges. 

Kalven Goreal (left) and Terence Lee

Kalven Goreal (left) and Terence Lee

Crafting Your Story

College preparation is an opportunity to craft your story and tell your tale. The application process is a very competitive and selective environment. Therefore, students have a small opportunity to share why they should be offered admission versus others. Goreal says that a good way to develop this story is by sharing your experiences and distinguishing yourself amongst others. At the same time, it is  important to place limits on what you write about. Things such as insignificant details, redundancies, and events/actions that can be easily interpreted wrong can all cast you in a negative light to the admission officer. Overall, Goreal says that you should share your experiences in a way that highlights your strengths while at the same time distinguishes the potential you have compared to your peers within the school environment.  

What Colleges want to See

“Colleges want to know you made the most of your time,” Goreal says, explaining the things involved in crafting a successful application. Even though earning a high title in a club or activity or winning many awards is a huge factor in impressing colleges, not all students can be presidents or national champions but it’s important to take a risk and work towards what you love. After hearing this, many students tend to join too many clubs, resulting in not being specialized in any area or subject. “Most successful people are focused on one or two different activities,” Goreal explains. He himself was in a lot of clubs but he wasn’t able to be highly specialized to get the most out of it. There was very little he could think of for college applications regarding the clubs and accomplishment aspect. “In a sense it was kind of embarrassing.” Although it is ideal to participate in clubs, Goreal says that you should dedicate yourself to something you’re good at and apply yourself heavily to a few clubs important to you. Over time, commitment can make you very good at what you’re working towards.  

In addition to joining clubs, you must also show off your skills and accomplishments. Think about the skills you have developed over years of practicing the things you enjoy and learning. How do you use those skills to help others and the community? How do you utilize those skills when you are faced with challenges? What is a passion that stems from that skill? Goreal suggests using that skill to help others and collaborate. “When you work with other people, everyone does a better job…” Goreal highlights collaboration and synergy as top points that colleges look for. Among your accomplishments and milestones, colleges also want to see how you are helping your community and your skills. “Illustrate the most exciting things you have done!” 

You also must talk about your passions in life as it is important to pursue what you enjoy working on. In addition to pursuing your passions, Goreal also suggests sharing knowledge with younger students as well. Colleges want to see you continually learning about those things that interest you and actively learn about the subjects or activities that you’re involved in. “When I talk with students at first it can be very challenging to express what you enjoy -- what you’re good at…” Expressing your passions can sometimes be a challenge, according to Goreal. He recommends just trying new and intriguing things to see what you like, and upon discovering your interests, try learning more about them or use them to do good in the community.  

Overall, colleges generally want someone who is well-rounded but especially good in their interests, all while learning new things and helping the people around them. 

Writing Essays

For the most part, applicants choose to write about general experiences such as their activities (both inside and out of school) and how that relates to the major they wish to pursue in college. This can be counterproductive if approached in the wrong way as general overarching hopes/experiences do not reveal much about your inner self. In more depth, you should generally write about your passions, how you help others, your extracurricular, and how you solve any challenges encountered. It is important to include your experiences and write vividly so you can captivate the readers and indirectly display positive character traits. “You should write vividly. And when I say vividly, I mean with a narrative flare.” Goreal suggests. He says that colleges mainly want to see your life experiences, how you’re committed to organizations, how you volunteer for good causes, and how you’re focused on what you’re doing. You must add in all the details while avoiding redundancies. Redundant information and ideas that are not fully developed are some red flags that should be avoided while writing your essays. Furthermore, it is essential to provide narration and tell a story in style. Everybody has their own style. Address that style in your essay. Colleges want to know: what’s different about you? How do you stand out? Making the reader visualize the writing gets them interested, so be descriptive. 

Additional Information:

During the talk, Kalven Goreal also provided some additional important information for applying to colleges. This includes researching, social media, letters of recommendation, and the three application decisions. 

“Research is your best friend.” Goreal encourages researching your schools and application requirements so that you know and have all the information ready and are prepared. Research is often a great tool to learn more about your college and raise your chances of having a fully prepared application. This also includes letters of recommendation from teachers, advisors, or mentors. You would want colleges to view you as a hard worker who is involved with both school and extracurricular activities. Teachers would also want to write a letter of recommendation for someone who is engaged in class, isn’t afraid to ask questions, does well in class, and shares their strengths with others. 

Another key point to look out for that Goreal elaborates on is social media. Goreal states that schools are very protective over the image of a “clean academic environment” that “doesn’t involved negative individuals” so it is very important to know that colleges can look through your social media and public information to see any bad behavior. Schools do not want someone who is disrespectful. Having a LinkedIn page can also be very useful if you are looking to be professional with businesses or college. It is a great platform to share your interests and accomplishments while giving you the opportunity to make professional contact. 

As for the application process itself, it is crucial to know about the three application decisions: early decision, early action, and regular decision. If you are interested in early decision, you must do everything early and sign a binding agreement, which ensures that you are 100% sure to attend that school right away when offered admission. Early decision is only allowed for one school so, as Goreal stated before, research is your best friend! Research the colleges you are interested in to see if early decision is the right decision. Early action, however, is a little different than early decision. For early action, you must also do everything earlier but it is not binding, unlike early decision. Since professors generally want students that do work earlier, it might be an advantage to apply for either of these since it sets you apart from regular decision applicants. Regular decision, on the other hand, is just the regular way to apply, with all the regular deadlines and requirements. There are certain tradeoffs between choosing the different types of college applications. Early decision has an increased chance of acceptance but is much more restrictive compared to early action and regular decision. Both EA and ED need to be submitted earlier leaving you with less time to refine and polish your essays, however, your acceptance/rejection results return much quicker (usually around December) which may alleviate additional stress that can build up later in the school year. Overall, it is up to the student which application method they choose as they are the best person to judge whether their applications are ready by the EA/ED deadline.

Q&A with Kalven Goreal:

Q: The common app has 6 essay prompts plus an essay of your choice. If I pick the topic of my choice, what are the pros and cons?

A: When I look at the common app application, I read all the prompts. I realize that this is the information that they want. That’s why they’re asking these particular questions and providing this particular prompt. They want to know about a time you were a leader or a time you helped solve a problem. Or they want to know what you’re really passionate about, a subject you’ve been studying -- inside and outside the classroom, or how you’ve helped your community. If you have something that is more important than helping your community or showing leadership or overcoming challenges, then you should share. It’s a bit of a risk and it’s very rare that what you share could not be presented in a different way under the other prompts. It’s a risk that I wouldn’t take personally if I was a student because it’s vague.

Q: Aside from scholarships, how big of a role do you think sports play in applications, compared to academics?

A: I played sports in high school and I was also a part of many academic activities -- science bowl and science olympiad being my favorite. I wanted to study physics in college but it turned out the college I went to did not have a physics program and I really wanted to go to that college so I changed my major to finance and economics instead. Ideally, the things you spend time on in high school are the same things you spend time on in college. I did play a lot of sports and spent a lot of time in my sport in college so I felt like I made the right decision for what I wanted at that time. Looking back, tennis is a great activity but spending all of those hours playing tennis was not very beneficial in a professional sense and most of life is professional. However, if you were to receive a scholarship, it’s completely different because the financial motivation to excel at that sport is greater than the passion to pursue an academic subject. Overall, academics are much more important than athletics in the sense that you’re going to be a student in college.

Q: If you weren’t sure what specific field you wanted to go into, how would you go about dedicating yourself to a select few clubs and organizations?

A: It’s really difficult to know what to apply yourself to without applying yourself to everything. If you don’t give yourself a chance, you won’t really be sure of what you’re good at or what you enjoy. Before I went to college, I had seven different jobs in eight months during my senior year of high school. I figured I needed to work and wanted to see all the different things there was to do. I found out pretty quickly -- seven different times -- that if you’re not very specialized, you’re not going to be happy doing the work that you’re doing. My rule of thumb is: if you’re not happy to be there, stop doing that activity. It’s not going to be worthwhile for you. I would definitely dedicate myself to the things that make me happy. 

Q: How important do you consider alumni interviews if they’re optional?

A: Whenever the word “optional” comes up in anything, I’ve learned that it really means mandatory. If they’re giving you the option of doing something, why wouldn’t you do it? So if they have an optional interview with an alumni, be confident! This is your opportunity to get in front of an alumni: someone that’s already been at the school that you want to go to. You get to find out what their college experience was like and you can show them how excited you are to go to that school. If you have the opportunity, you should take it. Otherwise, you’ll have many missed opportunities.

Q: Should I submit optional essays. Are they really optional?

A: Yes. If it’s “optional,” that means mandatory. You should complete it and use as many words as you’re given to complete the task. 

Q: What about the additional essay for details of circumstances or qualifications not related in the application? Is it a good idea to write another essay?

A: Different schools have different essays that ask you to discuss challenges in your life or large and great experiences that are now reflected in your application. Ideally, the great experiences are listed in your application and your essays make it very clear that you are highly involved in these activities that were very successful. The more challenging ones are the details of circumstances in your life that may be very difficult to share. I’ve been in that position and as I’ve grown older, I understand that this is a college application. It’s an application for an opportunity and you want to share the things that will make you stand out in a good way. There have been students that have had challenges and they’ve written about them in their essays. The largest focus for me is showing: how did you grow from this experience? What did you learn from it?

Q: Searching for college advisors is a pretty challenging thing. What is the criteria for selecting a college advisor? What makes the student stand out above and beyond everybody else, so they get to be the person that the college will pick?

A: If you’re looking for a college advisor or if you’re looking for someone that is going to help you through a very challenging process, ideally, you have someone that is aware of the challenges that you’re going to face and willing to make those challenges more manageable but not diminish those challenges. If the application process was easy, you’d just send in your grades and test scores and be done. It would be wise to have someone that makes you stronger as a thinker and a writer when you go through the process. When it comes to writing your essays, there’s a tendency for students to need help. It’s very important to have someone guide the students and help them think for themselves. If a student is not thinking for themselves, then they’re not going to succeed in college. A good college advisor will extract information from students. You have to work with someone you work well with.

Q: There are advisors that charge $10,000+ in hopes of helping students get into an Ivy League. In your opinion, is there anything special that they’re providing?

A: Definitely. When I first began working with high school seniors, I did some research on the area myself. I looked for what other companies were doing and how much they were charging but a lot of them don’t want to share what they’re charging. One of the companies was successful from what I remember and there were four Ivy League graduates that ran the company. They charged $15,000 to apply to one university and $35,000 for a full service application. On their list of services was strategic giving. This is when a company will advise you on making donations to a university strategically so that they remember you. At the end of the day, it’s an application process where students share what they’re good at. You want to be where you’re welcomed, not where you had to force your way into. I’ve observed that you can buy your way into a lot of things in life, but the things that matter; you probably want to work hard and earn them.

Q: You mentioned social media presence. If a person does not have any social media, do you recommend that they start building it younger so that colleges have something to refer to?

A: You don’t have to. No news is good news. If you don’t have anything, it’s very interesting and you stand out since most everybody has some sort of social media. However, if you were really involved in things you should have a LinkedIn page and you should follow some people. When it comes to other social media for recreational purposes, it’s not very impressive for a school. Their main focus is that you don’t do anything that you shouldn’t be doing using your social media. When it comes to sports it’s a little bit different because students have to share their experiences. However, there are websites that are solely dedicated to making athletic profiles. 


Student Discussion Panel - Terence Lee & Kevin Gao

Student Q&A panel, Kevin Gao (right) & Terence Lee

Student Q&A panel, Kevin Gao (right) & Terence Lee

As important it is to know about the whole application process, what goes into it, and how to craft an amazing application, it is also necessary to know about high school and college in general. Kevin Gao and Terence Lee led the student panel discussion where they talk about some helpful tips to prepare for college and Junior/Senior year of high school. 

High School

It is important to start getting ready for college early on during the high school years so you can give yourself a lot more time to try new things and do what you are interested in. Finding your interests can help expand the activities list for common apps and UC apps so colleges can have more to look at. “They see that list and they get a general sense of how you are -- but not much depth into it,” Kevin Gao, rising freshman at UC Berkeley and current president of EqOpTech states. Based on your application and what goes into it, colleges can get an overview of what kind of student and person you are and what you have accomplished. However, essays are where you get to talk about yourself and your experiences so colleges can actually see you in more depth. In the essays, you can talk about what you did in clubs, your accomplishments, something important, your hobbies, and much more. “For me, that was EqOpTech,” remarked Gao. In his common app essay, which was around 700 words, Gao wrote about his experience as president, obtaining the presidential and congressional awards, and how he was really dedicated and involved in EqOpTech. He talked about specific experiences such as delivering laptops and witnessing the emotions of kids receiving laptops for the first time. 

Gao also reminisced back on his time applying for colleges. “It was very miserable for me because I had to rush through it.” During the summer after junior year, Gao went to Japan and Minnesota for camp at a college. He said that he was in a mad rush for early action/decisions that were due on October 31st because he put off starting college apps due to other things. He suggests brainstorming starting at the beginning of summer, writing around september, and start with the UCs. Gao ended up applying to 5 early decision/actions, 7 UCs, and 20 schools in total. 

The application process can be rough, so finding someone to help, such as a college advisor, can be really helpful. Ideally, it should be someone who knows a lot about what you’re writing about. Terence Lee, rising sophomore at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and founder of EqOpTech, had his parents, english teacher, family friend, and Kalven Goreal helping with the essay. “It’s good to get as many perspectives as possible,” Lee recommends. “When you get people looking in from the outside, they’re able to catch things and provide you perspective that maybe you didn’t account for.”

College

Terence Lee gave his insight on the college experience in general during the student panel discussion as well. He applied to around 20 different colleges and didn’t really have any expectations for where he could get into or not. Lee applied to a broad range because “you’re never certain what colleges you’ll get into regardless of how much of an overachiever you are.” No matter how good your application looks, you can still get rejected. As for his senior year of high school, “I had a somewhat different senior year than most of you will probably have, as I participate in the high school dual enrollment at Foothill College” Lee assures. For his sophomore year, he took no APs and took 4 APs his junior year. Instead of taking a lot of AP classes, Lee signed up for several AP classes but dropped some in the first week because he took classes at Foothill college. These classes are recommended by him for reasons such as being able to be taught by college professors who were more focused on helping students learn material and get a better understanding rather than focusing on a final AP test. Lee also reminded students to check on the target colleges for transferred credits as not all AP tests are recognized by the colleges unlike community college credits are generally transferrable. 

In addition to high school experiences, Lee talked a lot about the general college experience and what to expect when you go there. For housing, there is usually 1 or 2 options: dorms or private housing. Some colleges require 1 year or more or even none at all for staying at their dorms. Lee states that dorms are “mediocre -- it’s what you’d come to expect” and he stayed in the private housing program, which is not part of the university but is a university certified housing arrangement. As for the food aspect of college, there is usually a meal plan which can be the number of swipes per semester or you can get a certain amount of credits to use for food. The workload in college is often different than in high school. According to Lee, you can’t really get by without putting 100% of your effort into the work given in college. He recommends definitely getting a calendar or planner and not loading up your schedule with hard classes during the first semester. “Don’t prioritize getting good grades over your personal health.” Don’t overwork or overload yourself with classes you can’t manage because in the end, that can result in a lot of stress put on you. 

Another important tip is to not compare yourself to others. In your classes, you’ll often notice that there will be people better than you and worse than you -- don’t compare yourself to your peers, but you can always ask them for help. Lee strongly recommends getting advice for the college life, especially from someone going to that university or an alumni. They’re the best source for that information since they actually attend college and get the firsthand experience.

Q&A -- Student Panel

Q: Realistically, how much time did you spend working on your essays to be satisfied before you submit them?

Terence: I spent most of my time working on the drafts during the summer when I had a lot more time. Even during the school year, I did spend most of my weekends working on the essays. I would say that I spent around 5 hours per day during the summer working on the essays. I had around 10-15 drafts before I was satisfied but that’ll vary with the essays as well as how much progression you make with each draft. Sometimes you’ll find that you will like previous drafts rather than recent ones, so it’s always good to keep a record of each draft you have. 

Q: Nowadays, technology is advancing very quickly. Should you focus on the software/hardware aspect for a “backup plan?”

Terence: It all depends on what you’re interested in. If you’re interested in technology and software, then you should make that choice. Although, there is always the risk that jobs will be outsourced by the time you graduate. It is also useful to find specialities and specialized skills. 

Q: What advice do you have for a rising junior or a rising sophomore?

Terence: It’s always good to start planning early. I would recommend starting to research colleges so you can get a general idea of what you want to major in or what colleges you want to look into. Maybe generate a list of the colleges you’re looking into. I had a spreadsheet of the colleges I wanted to apply to and over time, that list did change. You can always start planning early. As a rising sophomore or junior, you still have time to do the things that colleges look for in a student such as volunteering or taking on a leadership role. 

Kevin: High school is a marathon. You should challenge yourself as much as possible, all while trying to get A’s. You should focus on having a balanced life between school and activities. The college application is an evaluation of the past four years so as long as you follow what you want to do, you’ll do well. 

Terence: Colleges also would much rather see you start something and keep on doing it and bettering yourself at it rather than doing something maybe in your senior year that’s really impressive. They’re looking for time commitment and how you’re striving to do something continuously. So if you can start early, do something that you’re really passionate about and keep on working on it through high school. They want to see that you don’t give up easily.

Kalven: When I was in high school, I was on the science bowl team. When it came to our experiences as a group, we didn’t really get along at the beginning of the year. It was a tough experience but fast forward two years and we were spending two hours a day every Tuesday and Thursday practicing as a team. By our senior year, we won the entire competition and went to nationals. It’s very important to know that if you just take the time to apply yourself to something, work with other people, and working diligently, very good things will result out of that experience. 

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Courtesy of Joshua Kung, EqOpTech Digital Marketing


Featuring Kalven Goreal’ Q&A Students Panel, Terence Lee and Kevin Gao

Featuring Kalven Goreal’ Q&A Students Panel, Terence Lee and Kevin Gao

Thanks to AI in the classroom: the future is now

By Alice Liu

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning are taking the world by storm with innovations and functionality in everyday life -- all while providing convenience and utilities to the community. AI is seen and used in simple services such as Siri to more complicated ones such as personalized lesson plans, which are commonly used in the classroom. The field of education has seen much improvement and development over the centuries with its new methods and technology. Whether it’s speech recognition or self-driving cars, AI has proved itself to be a useful force of technology for the future. Now, with the ever growing inventions and uses of Artificial Intelligence, teachers and students alike can find even more uses for tech in the classroom.

Girl has interactive online learning chemistry and biology course. Image credit: Dreamstime

Girl has interactive online learning chemistry and biology course. Image credit: Dreamstime

Personalized learning through AI

Teaching a class full of students and making sure that they all understand and retain the information being taught can be tough, especially when their ways of learning differ from each other. However, with AI in the classroom, teachers and students alike can use certain programs for smart content such as digitized textbooks, or intelligent tutoring systems that are catered to a student’s needs. 

Digitized Textbooks

Millions of students are using different digitized textbook software, namely Pearson, an educational software system that uses students’ data to automatically provide real time feedback like a teacher would. It is one of the many companies transitioning from paper to digital textbooks, making it easier to update new and improved material online and be accessible whenever and wherever. Pearson offers the up-to-date content for a reasonable price, which is something many other companies are doing in an attempt to digitize their paper textbooks and make it easier for students to access them. 

Another popular example of digitized learning is Rosetta Stone, where users can learn different languages with the help of an AI and virtual learning system. It uses image and speech recognition for the best and most effective user experience in learning foreign languages. Its technology identifies the word being spoken and the user’s voice data 100 times per second with native speaker samples and provides real-time assessment. Systems like Rosetta Stone and Pearson are innovative ways of helping people learn through AI-powered systems. Not only can a personalized learning experience be essential for a student’s understanding and success, but it can also provide useful information for teachers about how each student is learning so they can make changes to their curriculum. 

Intelligent Tutoring Systems

Students are different and unique in their own ways, whether it be their learning style, knowledge of different materials, or even personality. Either way, those differences and needs are usually customized by teachers in a learning environment, but could technology help with that even more? The answer is yes through learning algorithm of intelligent tutoring systems (“ ITS”).

ITS, using AI, can transform teaching to adapt to a student’s weaknesses and help them work on the areas they need the assistance on. In a case conducted by ALEKS (Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces), an ITS, the pass rate in a math course at Clemson University jumped from 45 to 70 percent after it was introduced to an AI software. Through cognitive and ITS, students can drastically improve their skills in a specific area. For example, if a student is struggling with a problem, cognitive tutoring systems will take data gathered from how the student answered previous questions, apply what they know from that data, and identify which part of the question that is difficult and follow up with exercises to help the student practice that skill. 

How AI empowers and augments teachers’ capabilities

The main difference between these AI-powered software systems and actual teachers in the classroom is that the former is more accessible through the internet. Despite the increased convenience of smart education systems, they will never be able to replace a good teacher. Instead, researchers are hoping for the AI to augment student learning by performing more menial tasks freeing up the teacher’s time to better motivate and connect with the students. 

On top of that, AI can be used to assist teachers in tasks such as grading and plagiarism checks. One major use of AI is Turnitin, an online plagiarism detector that promotes academic integrity within students and makes it easier for teachers to grade papers. Another system that utilizes AI is Gradescope, a grading software system that helps teachers grade and mark essays more efficiently. 

Needless to say, AI brings so much to the classroom. With other emerging technologies, it is entirely possible that AI may soon be taking over the classroom with new and innovative teaching and learning devices. From personalized courses to digital learning, AI is sure taking a different approach to the more “traditional” way of learning. According to Charles Fadel, the founder of the Center for Curriculum Redesign, “AI is arguably the number one driving technological force of the first half of the century…” AI can be seen improving students’ and teachers’ lives in the classroom by providing access to new information, intelligent tutoring systems, and just overall being a great resource to utilize in the classroom to enrich learning. 

Bottom line: Is AI helping or hurting our education system?

AI is becoming increasingly ubiquitous globally and permeating into our lives without our knowledge, according to the RAND Corporation reports, “AI has so far found a perch in three "core challenges" of teaching: intelligent tutoring systems, automated essay scoring and early warning systems to identify struggling students who may be at risk of not graduating.” As much as AI can be used to level the playing field of education, some fear that it may widen the AI divide as AI tools will help advanced students and affluent school districts excel more leaving other students lagging behind due to lack of computer technology and connectivity. As schools are starting to embrace AI in the classroom, students who do not have technology access are at a huge disadvantage. Researchers have long been concerned about the chicken and egg correlation between wealth and education. Ready or not, the AI revolution is here and is likely to exacerbate the education gap. Take actions, whether you are a teacher, student or technologist, everyone should get involved and collaborate to help shape the future of AI learning. Ultimately, It is up to key stakeholders to work towards lessening the digital divide between the haves and have-nots. Only then, will all be free to reap the benefits of AI.


Alice Liu serves as intern at Equal Opportunity Technology (EqOpTech), a nonprofit organization that promotes equal access to technology. EqOpTech strives to enable at-risk students with refurbished computers to leverage the AI education opportunity.


Works Cited:

Faggella, Daniel. “Examples of Artificial Intelligence in Education.” Emerj, Emerj, 24 Apr. 2019, emerj.com/ai-sector-overviews/examples-of-artificial-intelligence-in-education/.

Griswold, Alison. “This Cognitive Tutor Software Is Already Having A Revolutionary Effect.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 6 Mar. 2014, www.businessinsider.com/cognitive-models-and-computer-tutors-2014-3.

Johnson, Alyssa. “5 Ways AI Is Changing The Education Industry.” ELearning Industry, 15 Feb. 2019, elearningindustry.com/ai-is-changing-the-education-industry-5-ways.

Loeffler, John. “Personalized Learning: Artificial Intelligence and Education in the Future.” Interesting Engineering, Interesting Engineering, 25 Dec. 2018, interestingengineering.com/personalized-learning-artificial-intelligence-and-education-in-the-future.

“Looking for Something? You're in the Right Place.” Rosetta Stone® - Language-Learning Software with Speech Recognition, www.rosettastone.com/speech-recognition.

Marr, Bernard. “How Is AI Used In Education -- Real World Examples Of Today And A Peek Into The Future.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 25 July 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2018/07/25/how-is-ai-used-in-education-real-world-examples-of-today-and-a-peek-into-the-future/#17123993586e.

McKenzie, Lindsay. “Inside Higher Ed.” Pearson Goes All in on Digital-First Strategy for Textbooks, 16 July 2019, www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/article/2019/07/16/pearson-goes-all-digital-first-strategy-textbooks.

Sandle, Tim. “Artificial Intelligence Used to Mark Exam Papers.” Digital Journal: A Global Digital Media Network, 29 May 2018, www.digitaljournal.com/tech-and-science/technology/artificial-intelligence-used-to-mark-exam-papers/article/523361.

Vander Ark, Tom. “The Promise and Implications of Artificial Intelligence in Education.” Getting Smart, 1 Apr. 2019, www.gettingsmart.com/2019/04/smart-review-the-promise-and-implications-of-artificial-intelligence-in-education/.

Zimmerman, Eli. “Educators Tailor Services to Individual Students with AI.” Technology Solutions That Drive Education, 27 June 2018, edtechmagazine.com/higher/article/2018/06/educators-tailor-services-individual-students-ai.

Dian Schaffhauser, “AI in Education Shows Most Promise for the Repetitive and Predictable.” 28 February, 2019, thejournal.com/articles/2019/02/28/ai-in-education-shows-most-promise-for-the-repetitive-and-predictable.


Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.

EqOpTech Experiences New Growth

By Sarah Yung

As June draws to a close, summer is kicking into full swing.  The LAHS campus bustles with summer camp and summer school students, downtown Los Altos comes alive with farmers’ markets, and my little sister’s coding camp just got interesting.  Rising seniors like myself ready themselves for the college application process, diving into research and essay-writing.  For EqOpTech as well, the end of June brings a breath of vitality with a new set of volunteer interns. 

EqOpTech Volunteer Intern Orientation 1 Meeting - The View Teen Center, June 22, 2019

EqOpTech Volunteer Intern Orientation 1 Meeting - The View Teen Center, June 22, 2019

This month, EqOpTech welcomed 22 volunteer interns to their ranks, including myself and my younger sister.  The organization’s volunteer count increased greatly from the previous year, alongside its impact.  Volunteers this year express interest in many areas, from computer refurbishing to digital marketing to grant proposal writing.  EqOpTech also received more laptop donations this year and deployed more laptops to MVLA schools and neighboring communities like East Palo Alto and San Jose.  The computer refurbishing program was EqOpTech’s founding project and one of its largest projects today.  The influx of new recruits will support the organization’s increased activity.

Terence Lee (Founder) demonstrated OS installation: Chrome, Linux Ubuntu & Lubuntu, CloudReady & Windows 10

Terence Lee (Founder) demonstrated OS installation: Chrome, Linux Ubuntu & Lubuntu, CloudReady & Windows 10

In the last meeting, new volunteer interns watched a series of demos on refurbishing Chromebooks. They also met EqOpTech’s founder, Terence Lee, and a current intern, Nate Latif. This group learned about a variety of topics related to refurbishing computers - including installing Linux Ubuntu and power-washing Chromebooks. This is the first meeting of a two-part orientation that will educate interns on the refurbishing process. The next meeting will focus primarily on computer hardware. However, volunteer interns can already begin working with computer supplies - the first meeting finished with a supplies pick up.

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My sister returned from orientation with a stack of Chromebooks, old and a little battered.  The car ride home shook off most of the dust from the computer covers, but if you look closely, you can still find some dust collected in the little nooks by the hinges and around the keys.  None of the computers turn on, sitting untouched for so long.  That’s why she also has a charger neatly wound next to the computers.  The computers perch on the corner of her desk as I write this, ready for a second life.  Although she has little experience when it comes to computer refurbishing, EqOpTech provides a number of resources to guide new volunteer interns.  Next meeting, she will bring in the refurbished computer supplies and they will be deployed to one of the schools EqOpTech works with. 

Although new recruits came from different backgrounds in technology, they all approached the computer refurbishing project with enthusiasm.  Terence Lee, the founder of EqOpTech, said they “were able to catch on relatively quickly [...]. This will allow them to explore other projects and/or step up and become mentors themselves.”  EqOpTech encourages volunteer interns to learn and troubleshoot independently, building important critical thinking skills applicable in school and beyond.  Maya Yung, a new recruit, says, “EqOpTech teaches you to be more independent so you can be a problem solver rather than immediately asking for help.”   

As one of the new recruits, I am excited to dive into my projects.  I see my lack of experience not as a disadvantage, but as an opportunity for growth.  EqOpTech also enters a new stage of growth, with more volunteer interns than ever before.  Senior members have the hefty task of guiding the many new volunteer interns.  Integrating these new recruits into the organization will take EqOpTech to new heights.  As June draws to a close, I look forward to helping EqOpTech flourish in July and beyond.


About EqOpTech

EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.eqoptech.org

Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.

EqOpTech honors 2018 President's Volunteer Service Award winners

By Kevin Gao

Kevin Gao, Eric Che, Daniel Lim, Nate Latif, Trevor Smith (left to right) - 2018 President’s Volunteer Service Award medalists

Kevin Gao, Eric Che, Daniel Lim, Nate Latif, Trevor Smith (left to right) - 2018 President’s Volunteer Service Award medalists

EqOpTech volunteers receiving 2018 President's Volunteer Service Award - produced by Cedric Chan

2018 PRESIDENT'S VOLUNTEER SERVICE AWARD

The President's Volunteer Service Award recognizes, celebrates and holds up as role models Americans making a positive impact as engaged and deeply committed volunteers. EqOpTech, a PVSA certifying organization, shares a similar vision to empower and enable student volunteers with a platform to gain real-world experience and leadership skills and inspires them to give back to the community.

On March 3, 2019, EqOpTech is proud to celebrate volunteerism recognizing students from Saratoga High School and Los Altos High School for their service and commitment to the underserved community in the area of technology and education. We applaud their 2018 community service projects to level the playing field in education via technology.

Congratulations To EqOpTech's 2018 PVSA award winners. We are honored to award the following well-deserving students with the official PVSA medallion, personalized certificate of achievement together with a congratulatory letter from President of United States. 

  • Nate Latif, Bronze Award, Los Altos High School

  • Trevor Smith, Gold Award, Los Altos High School

  • Eric Che, Gold Award, Saratoga High School

  • Daniel Lim, Gold Award, Los Altos High School

  • Kevin Gao, Gold Award, Los Altos High School

"Thanks to EqOpTech for sponsoring this award and providing us this opportunity," said Kevin Gao, EqOpTech President. "We all know how important this is not only to our college applications, but also for being able to recognize the best of the American spirit and inspire everyone to live a life of community service through presidential gratitude and national recognition. Special thanks to EqOpTech’s board, Hing Lee and Lucy Lee for their guidance and support. I also want to thank everyone here for working so hard to refurbish laptops and coming up with creative solutions to improve the refurbishing results in the process of earning this award.”

A special thank you to Cedric Chan, our new intern for producing the 2018 PVSA ceremony iMovie.

Going forward, let's work together to make EqOpTech bigger, better and greater. 


ABOUT THE PRESIDENTIAL VOLUNTEER SERVICE AWARD

The President's Volunteer Service Award recognizes, celebrates and holds up as role models Americans making a positive impact as engaged and deeply committed volunteers. In 2003, the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation launched the President's Volunteer Service Award to recognize the importance of volunteers to America's strength and national identity, and furthermore, to honor the deeply invested volunteers whose service is multiplied through the inspiration they give others.

The President's Volunteer Service Award recognizes United States citizens and lawfully admitted, permanent residents of the United States who have achieved the required number of hours of service over a 12-month time period or cumulative hours over the course of a lifetime. To learn more about the President's Volunteer Service Award, visit www.presidentialserviceawards.gov

About EqOpTech

EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.eqoptech.org

Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.

EqOpTech Donates Refurbished Laptops to Students in East Palo Alto

By Daniel Lim, EqOpTech Intern

EqOpTech of Los Altos, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit donated 56 refurbished laptops to middle school students living in East Palo Alto, most of which have never owned a laptop before.

Students standing in a circle were thrilled with their new laptops with Kevin Gao, EqOpTech President, standing in the back.

Students standing in a circle were thrilled with their new laptops with Kevin Gao, EqOpTech President, standing in the back.

Many children have never owned a laptop, so they are unable to do research projects or homework assigned to them at school. To make do, they have to borrow their parents’ smartphones when they are home to complete their work. However, the screens are too small and cause a strain on the eyes, not to mention the fact that the keyboards are tiny and unwieldy; a proper laptop is much better for work. The EqOpTech students-help-students program seeks to benefit needy students with technology tools and training to enhance their ability to excel academically. Since 2015, EqOpTech has launched a program to recycle, refurbish and redeploy unwanted laptops to support and teach the Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics (STEM) program benefiting underserved students in San Jose, Mountain View, Los Altos and East Palo Alto.

Each of EqOpTech’s Macbooks have been refurbished to replace their outdated Mac OS software. Students will now have easy access to computers for home use to take online classes such as Khan Academy and collaborate with classmates in online homework and research.  With our laptops, these children can do research at home and write essays using their laptops rather than having to go out to libraries to use public computers. Now, the students can independently browse the internet without needing to borrow the smartphones of their parents, and for as long as they want. We hope that through our laptops donation program, the children will not only open up new opportunities but also empower them to better their own lives with technology.  

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About EqOpTech

EqOpTech Inc. is an IRS-designated tax exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that enables free, equal opportunity learning via access to technology in under-served community. EqOpTech provides easy access to computer hardware, software, and mentor support in STEM education. For more information, visit www.EqOpTech.org. Follow EqOpTech on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.


Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award.

Visit here for more information.

Congratulations to 2018 EqOpTech Award Winners

The Equal Opportunity Technology Program provides both leadership opportunities and real work experiences for student volunteers. It is with great pride and honor to recognize the following recipients of this year’s EqOpTech Awards for their demonstrated passion and above-and-beyond commitment serving as leaders and role models for others. 

Kevin Gao (right), Terence Lee

Kevin Gao (right), Terence Lee

Daniel Lim (right), Terence Lee

Daniel Lim (right), Terence Lee

2018 LEADERSHIP AWARD *

The 2018 EqOpTech Leadership Award goes to:

·        Kevin Gao, Class of 2019, Los Altos High School

·        Daniel Lim, Class of 2020, Los Altos High School.

Kevin Gao leads the EqOpTech’s Computer Refurbishing Workshop at Los Altos High School with members of National Honor Society. He is very team oriented, engages all volunteers to give back to the community while learning technical computer skills. Kevin is an effective collaborator with community leaders; cultivating community partnership with Rambus Inc. and Sunday Friends to jointly recycle, refurbish and redeploy used laptops for students in need. We thank you, Kevin for your good citizenship, leadership and contributions to promote equal access to technology.

Daniel Lim leads the Computer-in-the-Box program at Egan Junior High School to revive used computers. He trains students in computer skills while giving back to underserved community, and act as a role model for students. On his own initiative, Daniel initiates a laptop donation program to Uganda, enabling a business school student technology access to do homework and research. EqOpTech is especially proud of your passion, initiative and creativity to help needy students to excel in STEM education. We thank you, Daniel for your commitment, contributions and inspiration.

*EqOpTech Leadership Award is sponsored by the Lee Family Trust.


Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award.

Visit here for more information.

Rambus Donates Surplus Laptops to EqOpTech for At-risk Students

Los Altos – EqOpTech of Los Altos, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit is teaming up with Rambus to deploy used laptops to provide equal access to technology, as part of an ongoing computer reuse initiative to benefit needy students and minimize e-waste. 

Kevin Gao (left) EqOpTech President, Terence Lee (EqOpTech Founder), Minhaj Shahab (Rambus), Ramesh Khanna (Rambus)

Kevin Gao (left) EqOpTech President, Terence Lee (EqOpTech Founder), Minhaj Shahab (Rambus), Ramesh Khanna (Rambus)

Since 2015, EqOpTech has launched a program to recycle, refurbish and redeploy unwanted laptops to support and teach the Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics (STEM) program benefiting underserved students in San Jose, Mountain View, Los Altos and East Palo Alto. Kids from low-income families will now have easy access to computers for home use to take online classes such as Khan Academy and collaborate with classmates in online homework and research.

Rambus Incorporated, founded in 1990, is an American technology licensing company, has donated its surplus laptops to support EqOpTech's computer reuse program. EqOpTech will install new hard disk drives onto the donated laptops helping to prolong their service life and reinstall all operating systems, drivers, and software to restore the computer to its original full functionality. Over the last two years, EqOpTech has given a new and purposeful second life to hundreds of used laptop computers and put them back to productive use for students in need.

About EqOpTech
EqOpTech Inc. is an IRS-designated tax exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that enables free, equal opportunity learning via access to technology in under-served community. EqOpTech provides easy access to computer hardware, software, and mentor support in STEM education. For more information, visit www.EqOpTech.org. Follow EqOpTech on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.

About Rambus Inc.

Dedicated to making data faster and safer, Rambus creates innovative hardware, software and services that drive technology advancements from the data center to the mobile edge. Our architecture licenses, IP cores, chips, software, and services span memory and interfaces, security, and emerging technologies to positively impact the modern world. We collaborate with the industry, partnering with leading chip and system designers, foundries, and service providers. Integrated into tens of billions of devices and systems, our products and technologies power and secure diverse applications, including Big Data, Internet of Things (IoT) security, mobile payments, and smart ticketing. For more information, visit rambus.com.


Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award.

Visit here for more information.

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KPIX 5 CBS Donates Used Computers to EqOpTech for Students In Need

KPIX 5 CBS surveys conducted within the last year show more than one in ten California households don’t have access to the internet because many cannot afford a computer. EqOpTech Inc. of Los Altos, Jefferson Award winner, deploys used computers to provide equal access to technology and minimize e-waste.

Jeff Jeandheur, KPIX 5 CBS, VP of Engineering (right) and Terence Lee, EqOpTech Founder

Jeff Jeandheur, KPIX 5 CBS, VP of Engineering (right) and Terence Lee, EqOpTech Founder

KPIX 5 has donated its surplus computer equipment to support EqOpTech's computer reuse program. EqOpTech will install new hard disk drives onto the donated laptops and reinstall all operating systems, drivers, and software to restore the computer to its original full functionality. Over the last two years, EqOpTech has given a new and purposeful second life to hundreds of used laptop computers and put them back to productive use for students in need.

Since 2015, EqOpTech has launched a program to recycle, refurbish and redeploy unwanted laptops to support and teach the Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics (STEM) program benefiting underserved students in San Jose, Mountain View, Los Altos and East Palo Alto. Kids from low-income families will now have easy access to computers for home use to take online classes such as Khan Academy and collaborate with classmates in online homework and research. 

A special thank you to CBS/KPIX 5 reporters for producing and airing the Jefferson Awards story and help us get the word out to the community. Community collaboration is key to our success in enabling technology and fighting inequity. We team up with local schools, service clubs and companies to host refurbish workshop, tech talk series and STEM-related workshops to teach, mentor and motivate young learners to develop STEM interests and skills.  Over the last two years, EqOpTech has revived hundreds of used laptop computers and put them back to productive use for students in need.

About EqOpTech
EqOpTech Inc. is an IRS-designated tax exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that enables free, equal opportunity learning via access to technology in under-served community. EqOpTech provides easy access to computer hardware, software, and mentor support in STEM education. For more information, visit www.EqOpTech.org. Follow EqOpTech on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.

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Our Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award.

Visit here for more information.