TGR Foundation

As educators face challenges of distance learning and look for strategies to keep students engaged in virtual, in-person and hybrid class formats, TGR Foundation’s four-part series of STEM Studio trainings provided a solution with a domestic launch in Anaheim, CA. In close proximity, to the foundation’s flagship TGR Learning Lab, many Anaheim Union High School District educators had already been connected to our programs.  

 In the summer of 2021, the cohort model was launched with a group of teachers from Dale, Sycamore, Orangewood and Walker junior high schools participating in Virtual STEM Studio One, Inquiry Mindset. From there we have continued working with cohorts from Dale that have moved forward in our Inquiry Pathway to a second Inquiry Workshop, Making Thinking Visible.   

DoD STEM, leader of the Defense STEM Education Consortium (DSEC), has recently chosen TGR Foundation to manage their DoD STEM Ambassador Program for the 2021-2022 academic year.

In September of 2021, TGR Foundation welcomed 16 STEM Ambassadors from across the United States. These highly qualified educators were selected from a wide applicant pool and come equipped with a variety and wealth of knowledge in STEM-related fields across the k-12 spectrum. 

At 16, Abigail Yun has already discovered a passion for technology and begun pursuing opportunities to gain experience and explore potential career paths.

In partnership with Bitwise Industries, TGR Foundation offered its students access to an eight-week pre-apprenticeship training and introduction to web development to teach the fundamentals of HTML and CSS. Upon completion of the training and high school graduation, participants would have an opportunity to join its paid apprenticeship.

After learning about the training, Abigail signed up immediately. We recently connected with her to learn more about her experience and career outlook.

As an educator, I have always felt powerful opportunities present themselves all the time, you just have to have your eyes open to see when they are coming and to understand that they are in fact opportunities. This was definitely the case when members of the TGR Foundation programs team learned about an opportunity to partner with the D.K. Kim Foundation to grow an education initiative based in Colombia. At this moment, I was not very familiar with Colombia and was eager to learn more and see if it might be a fit for our professional learning work.

As we met with Olga Lucia Parga Nates and Renee Cowan, of Kim Integrated Health Management Initiative and the D.K. Kim Foundation, respectively, it became clear they had a similar mission as TGR Foundation – to support communities in closing the opportunity gap. This first meeting was full of great ideas and lofty goals, but it wasn’t until I met some of the Colombian teachers, we could work with that it is was clear we needed to work with them!

As we reflect on the many highlights of 2021 we can all acknowledge the change and revivals we experienced together. From advancements in medical approaches to the Coronavirus to the reopening of schools and businesses, this year gave us reasons to reflect where we’ve come from, celebrate how we moved forward and continue working toward a brighter future for everyone.

Growing up I was always fascinated by how things worked. I was the kid that took apart the remote control and put it back together again. My parents knew early on that if my hands were busy, so was my mind. And they knew I came alive when I was working with my hands.  

Sometimes, when my mom was off from work, she’d take me to a science store in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, across the river from our home in Philadelphia. I’d leave with some sort of D.I.Y. kit, like a baking soda volcano or a robot making set.   

My dad was on the road a lot, working as a truck driver, but when he’d come round, we’d sit for hours and build RC model planes. And sometimes, if we finished early enough, we’d head over to the airport, park the car and sit for hours, watching the planes take off and land. It never got old.  

Staring up into the sky, with my dad by my side and airplanes overhead, I knew, even as an eight-year-old kid from Philly, that I would be a pilot one day.  

I’m 21-years-old now, and nearly one year into my eighteen-month program at flight mechanic school. I’m excited about what awaits me after I graduate, but the road to get where I am today was not always clear or easy.   

Currently a senior at John F. Kennedy High School, 16-year Christian Seong has a lot on his plate – and he likes it that way. When he’s not spending his free time thrift shopping or drawing, Christian keeps himself active and involved at school, and currently serves as the Associated Student Body President. Christian is also the Program Choir President of the Kennedy Singers and the co-President/co-Founder of the Humanitarian Resource Association as well as the John F. Kennedy High School Humanitarian Resource Association Branch Club. This summer, Christian participated in TGR Foundation’s virtual College Bound Academy (CBA) program, where he received the college guidance and support he was looking for. Read more about his experience with CBA.

At just 14-years-old, Christopher “Topher” Cornell loves to take on new challenges. In the year-and-a half that he’s been a TGR Learning Lab student member, Topher has joined numerous classes exploring topics from graphic design to app development and forensics. A high school freshman at Cambridge Virtual Academy, Topher partook in the TGR Learning Lab’s Pi-ology class this summer and had the opportunity to work with a Raspberry Pi for the first time. Learn more about his hands-on experience with the Pi and how he plans to incorporate what he’s learned into his possible future career!  

Over the past year, our team has learned to embrace change. Prior to March 2020 – all our incoming Earl Woods Scholars would gather at the TGR Learning Lab in Anaheim, CA to partake in our annual Pre-College Retreat. However, this year was different; our team had to pivot and transform an in-person event to a virtual setting.

Our first priority was to keep our scholars safe by having them attend the event from home. Keeping to tradition, the Pre-College Retreat remained a two-day event. We had 15 scholars join us from Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and Orange County, CA.

As any educator knows, students invariably leave a mark. Whether your orbits pass quickly, or they line up for months or years, your time with a student – the shared learning experiences, the bits of laughter or frustration, the feeling one gets during moments of reflection – is lasting. For some, it might be the slightest bout of recognition (“That’s right, you sat in the back corner of my class!”); for others, for one reason or another, no amount of time can completely wash away a set of memories. Elmu Sadalah was one of those students who left an indelible mark.