Issue(s) of Focus:Homelessness and youth mentoring for girls of color.
Project: I want to work within youth mentoring, helping foster leadership, education, and creativity. I would want to focus on youth of color, especially young girls. I believe that it’s important for youth of color to have the most support while growing up and learning more about the world.
Inspiration: Growing up, I found that I had a strong passion for STEM and the arts, but what really motivated me to keep trying new things and being creative was the support and encouragement I received from those around me. Their confidence in me shaped my drive and confidence, inspiring me to pursue new opportunities. I would want to keep the torch lit by doing the same thing others did to me to encourage the new brains of this generation.
Future Goals: By encouraging inclusion, empowerment, and resource access, I hope to create opportunities for underrepresented communities to thrive through my work in the community and social impact projects. My objective is to promote equity in order to make a meaningful difference, especially in areas where voices are frequently disregarded or marginalized.
Issue(s) of Focus: Poverty, Mental Health, Environmental Issues
Major(s): Business Management and Entrepreneurship
Project: My goal is to help underrepresented communities’ businesses grow. I will learn to create sustainable enterprises, manage resources effectively, and foster entrepreneurship. I hope to start businesses that support my community’s growth, create employment opportunities, and preserve cultural traditions.
Inspiration: I was inspired because of the direct ties I have. Experiencing firsthand how difficult it can be to have the resources and knowledge to opportunities can be a huge obstacle to face without support.
Future Goals: I hope to accomplish a wider understanding of the different businesses ran by people from various backgrounds and what that entails. I want to give back to my community and be the support system people need.
Issue(s) of focus: Youth Mentoring/Affordable Housing
Project: I want to help nonprofit schools as an academic advisor when it comes to applying for scholarships, deciding which colleges they want to attend, and how to apply to them, helping them transition to their next chapter in life.
Inspiration: My parents own a charter school and they always talk about how their students don’t really know what they want to do when it comes to finishing school and it’s because no one is showing them what there is. Also during my high school years, I had an advisor who would send weekly scholarships and college recommendations and I felt it helped me understand what I wanted once I finished school.
Future Goals: What I hope to accomplish is helping kids understand a path when it comes to finishing high school and opening their eyes to all the amazing resources that are out there that they don’t know of. So they to can have the chance to go to college and do it the right way with help.
Major: Social Work and Minor in Entrepreneurship
Project: I’m planning on bringing awareness on homelessness and find a way to supply any necessities for those in need.
Inspiration: I took a social work class and homelessness is a current issue in Colorado. I want to support those who are experiencing homelessness.
Future Goals: I hope to build experiences to make myself more prepared for the social work field. Also, I hope to learn new things and expand on it
Major: Computer Science
Project: I am considering a way to give accessible and portable wifi, including computers, to students who don’t have access to these commodities. These will help students with school, work, and everyday use.
Inspiration: During high school, I didn’t have my laptop. However, I received a computer from a class program I was in called kidsTek. I did well in the class, even receiving Student of the Year, and for being a good student, they gifted me a laptop, which I still use to this day.
Future Goals: I hope that students will have easy access to technology, which will enhance their educational life- and their life in general. Especially in our modern time, low-income families who don’t have access to technology fall behind in many opportunities. I wish to give them those opportunities.
Major: International Business
Project: I’m passionate about creating practical housing solutions for the unhoused along with programs and resources that assist individuals with obtaining services that can be beneficial to helping them improve their lives. I believe that shelter is a basic human necessity and if we made housing accessible to all, we can decrease the amount of unhoused individuals and lift others from the brink of poverty.
Inspiration: I became inspired to solve housing issues affecting individuals living in poverty due to the rise of the unhoused population in the city and county of Denver. Witnessing the growth of homelessness change the face of the city, made me want to make a difference that would affect each and every resident.
Future Goals: I hope to engage the community of Denver and active city legislators to collaborate on initiatives that transform the housing opportunities for residents living in Denver regardless of their income and social status. Together we can improve not just the lives of the unhoused, but make our city one that provides opportunities to all.
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Project: For my Puksta Project, I am planning on mentoring students at a specific high school and providing seniors with college prep, advice, and resources on how to prepare for college. I especially want to help first-generation students and students from low-income households find scholarship opportunities available at their college of choice.
Inspiration: What inspired me to choose this project was thinking back to my senior year in high school and really wanting to attend a 4-year university. The only barrier I had, was being able to afford it. There were many resources provided by my school, but I would’ve never known, if I didn’t do the research myself. I know how difficult it is to make a college decision, so I want to make this process simpler for students who want to attend university.
Future Plans: I hope to increase the number of first-generation students in predominantly white universities and allow them to be an example for future generations. I also hope to lift some weight off student’s shoulders and reassure them throughout the college application process.
Major: Entrepreneurship (Business School)
Project: Free (wireless) internet for impoverished students and those on EBT/Medicaid.
Inspiration: I hacked video games at the age of 8 (1997) and am very knowledgeable about anything dealing with computers and networking. I founded my own computer repair business around the age of 15 that is still in operation, going on for 2 decades. This project won’t take much funding other than equipment costs. I have friends in the South who can professionally climb towers and set everything up.
Future Goals: Providing resources for those who can’t afford internet, even with the ACP program which takes $30 off any eligible internet service provider. I’ve run out of internet on my phone and had to pay more, so I can imagine how much more it impacts those even less unfortunate than I am. This will include home and mobile internet, so one can stream videos on khan, YouTube, or any medium and never worry about at least one resource needed for a proper education.
Major: Architecture and Planning
Project: I am hoping to learn how to best give these resources out to local towns and maybe even get a stronger engagement with the people in each neighborhood! I am currently researching how best to engage people to come together, as well as talk with government agencies with a powerful voice.
Inspiration: I was shocked to learn how many people did not know about redlining and the systemic issues that shaped where people live in this state. Many don’t know about the resources they have so they aren’t forced to move, and I want more regulation on the amount of gentrification that has been happening to Coloradans.
Future Plans: I hope to slow the ongoing displacement happening and raise awareness of the devastating impacts it has on the economy and local people.
Major: Social Work, Spanish
Project: Spreading awareness of various issues and resources in the Denver area through social media while sparking conversations of critical reflection.
Inspiration: Volunteering at food banks has allowed me to see the different kinds of people that are struggling, even within the small town where I come from where I thought everybody was financially stable. It makes me want to help these people live comfortably and safely.
Future Goals: I want to get more funding put towards homeless shelters in Denver or other major resources that they could use day-to-day.