After studying Political Science in college, I became a middle school math and history teacher in a low-income community. I witnessed firsthand that the American Dream was not a possiblity for everyone. If a kid is smart and hard working, but the resources aren't there to support her, it is very difficult for her to end up with certain opportunities that rich kids in America take for granted.
I saw technology as one way to help address this complex problem. I took a bunch of night classes in CS, and I'll be graduating with a Masters in CS from a full-time program in May. I wish I started down this path earlier because there is so much to do, but I guess that's how life is. I've found that I am happiest when I am giving to and empowering others, and the technological revolution we are currently living through enables us to do this at an amazing scale. I feel very fortunate to be alive at this time in history, and to have had a path in life that enabled me to find Computer Science. This is what motivates me to work relentlessly every day.
the American Dream was not a possiblity for everyone
and
it is very difficult for her
No rational person thinks it is easy in the United States to go from being low-income to high-income. But hopefully also no rational person thinks it is "not a possibility for everyone" as you first said.
I went from a very low-income family to very high-income myself, so I know it is possible.
I don't think it makes any practical sense to talk about whether something is strictly possible or strictly not; if a random kid has 0.0001% chance of crossing the income barrier then of course you can say that "it is possible for everyone", but that doesn't change the fact that for that kid it's next to impossible, period.
> it is very difficult for her to end up with certain opportunities that rich kids in America take for granted
That's actually one of the things that originally drew me to computer science--code is inherently democratizing. It only takes a small, core group of people to build something world-class, provided that core group knows what the hell they're doing. Unlike just about any other field out there, software is something anyone can create. And as hardware has become more commoditized and virtualized, the barriers to entry have been reduced almost purely to knowledge and effort.
+1. Information can be very powerful. At this era, we have the opportunities to bring information to people need them with very low cost. This will change the world. I'm a believer and working on it. There are so many things we can do. Good luck!
I saw technology as one way to help address this complex problem. I took a bunch of night classes in CS, and I'll be graduating with a Masters in CS from a full-time program in May. I wish I started down this path earlier because there is so much to do, but I guess that's how life is. I've found that I am happiest when I am giving to and empowering others, and the technological revolution we are currently living through enables us to do this at an amazing scale. I feel very fortunate to be alive at this time in history, and to have had a path in life that enabled me to find Computer Science. This is what motivates me to work relentlessly every day.
In peace, Mike