When most people think of a “high school passion project,” they possibly envision a small-scale pottery club, an eagle scout project, or a small fundraiser for the homeless. For senior Ryan Tellado, LatinXTech, his once small-scale passion project, has transformed into a certified non-profit with over 14 chapters, changing the lives of students in nine different states.
LatinXTech is a nonprofit dedicated to empowering underserved students in STEM, Tellado said. “Our mission is to inspire kids to explore technology while fostering a supportive community where they can grow and lead.”
In March of 2023, Tellado started volunteering at Lifemoves, where he realized that a large majority of underprivileged kids lack opportunities specifically related to STEM education in Silicon Valley. That experience sparked an idea for him.
“I was inspired by Issac, a kid I met and became close with during my time volunteering at a [homeless] shelter,” said Tellado. “He had a real passion for game design, which motivated me to create opportunities for kids like him who might not have access to the resources they need to pursue their interests.”
At LatinXTech, high school students promote strong STEM foundations by providing multi-lesson workshop plans for local schools including Landels and Lyndale elementary. By using interactive and hands-on learning experiences, student volunteers teach Scratch programming and robotics machine learning to engage young students.
“Our curriculum [is] a combination of teaching, but also a lot of engagement,” senior and LatinXTech vice president Axel Edin said. “We’ll show a concept, we’ll give a few examples, then we’ll have a quiz where everyone gets to pitch in and try to figure out puzzles. We have them engage with it, going in on their own computers and trying to apply the concepts we teach.”
Apart from in-person workshops, Tellado said that LatinXTech is currently working to implement asynchronous learning and activities, including a future Chromebook Drive, as well as online tutoring and mentorship services to further support students.
“With just a computer and an internet connection, one can do so much with code at little cost,” Tellado said. “That’s what makes [technology] so transformative. Anyone can start with the right foundation and passion.”
Despite their success in expanding across the country, becoming a certified non-profit was far from easy, Tellado said. Challenges included the founders being unable to open a bank account or sign documents due to being under the age of 18. Despite the difficulty, Tellado said the hard work was worth it.
“Seeing the result of what we’re doing and our ideas come to life is a huge thing,” Tellado said. “That’s what makes it worth it. [LatinXTech] doesn’t even feel like work, [which makes] balancing school and the nonprofit easier.
Tellado’s driven and positive personality is what sets him apart from other leaders, Edin said.
“There are definitely a lot of smart people in the world, but what sets [Tellado] apart is his initiative,” Edin said. “There are a lot of people doing school clubs, but he decided to go beyond this. He saw an opportunity to try to have a greater impact.”
As a close friend and colleague of Tellado, Edin said that Tellado’s down-to-earth persona and sense of humor inspires him to keep going. Instead of dwelling on past mistakes, Tellado motivates his peers to simply make some jokes and laugh about it, Edin said.
“[Tellado] actually has really positively impacted my life,” Edin said. “I’ve been a much more positive person and I’ve also tried [to follow] after him and tried to spread positivity as much as I can.”
Aside from planning to study both data science and business in college, Tellado plans to continue developing LatinXTech to further aid underprivileged kids around the nation.
“I definitely see myself continuing this work, but maybe in more of a mentor role,” Tellado said. “We’re training leaders across the country to step up as the next generation, and I’d love to help guide that process as our organization grows.”
Tellado said that he hopes to influence other high schoolers with an idea and passion to change their community-or society for the better.
“Start wherever you are and start small,” Tellado said. “It might seem discouraging when you’re always planning, and that’s why the hardest part is always just getting started. LatinXTech didn’t have a detailed plan when we began emailing schools. We just went for it, and caught up later.”
*This article was also published in our print edition.
