- So I'd now like to introduce you
to another AI4 alum and equally impressive young woman.
Stephanie Tena-Meza is a junior at Salinas High School
and attended a Stanford AI4ALL in the summer of 2017.
Stephanie is a second-generation Mexican American
from Salinas Valley here in California, where she was
raised against the backdrop of migrant farm work.
Not a world we normally associate within Silicon Valley,
she once told me that although she comes
from a community that struggles with limited hot water
and electricity, she does not, in her own words,
consider herself poor in knowledge.
Having worked with her personally,
I can tell you she's right.
Since discovering a passion for computer science and AI,
Stephanie has begun the project to take
a data science approach to mapping the water toxicity
in her town as part of a larger effort
to correlate water quality with poverty.
People like Stephanie break the
mold of technology innovation.
They bring not only ingenuity to the field,
but the new perspectives we need to broaden its horizons.
And they give me real hope for
the future of leadership in AI.
Please welcome Stephanie Tena-Meza.
(applause)
- Thank you, Professor Fei-Fei for the introduction.
It is such an honor to be here today
to share my story with you all.
We can all agree that inclusive diversity
cultivates unique perspectives.
Cultivating unique perspectives allows
for the input of all people across the social spectrum,
which is essential in advancing society.
The question that now arises is
how can we ensure that communities
with a diverse set of individuals, such as disadvantaged,
financial-bearing, historically underrepresented groups,
have educational opportunities set available to them,
to be at the forefront of new tech careers.
I was born and raised in Salinas, California,
also widely known as a salad bowl of the world
for the vast production of strawberries,
broccoli, and lettuce, to name a few.
The majority of my community is home to many
first-generation Mexican American children
whose parents immigrated to land
of opportunities and I am one of them.
As a low-income, underrepresented minority,
I've experienced how growing up
in an underserved community can hinder
or feed one's intellectual curiosity.
By chance in middle school, I stumbled across
one of the very few free community
coding clubs in my area called CoderDojo,
which planted a seed of curiosity within me.
This seed of curiosity grew and became
the driving force behind my passion for CS.
I soon merged my passion for CS
and for attempting to solve global
environmental issues, such as water contamination.
I got interested in the issue of water contamination
because I have witnessed how chemical fertilizers
and pesticides can end up in the
water supply of our community rivers.
I started to use computing to explore this
through a science fair project.
In ninth grade I investigated the effects
of agricultural and nonagricultural
river water on aquatic life.
I was curious to understand whether agricultural
chemical fertilizers or pesticides
presented any harmful threats to aquatic life.
I continued my investigation to solve water contamination
through the AI4ALL research fellowship program.
I worked with Ms. Raquel Munoz,
a senior data scientist at Medium,
on a research project that used AI techniques
to predict whether parts of the Cal Water river,
a river that serves the lives of
36 million people and endangered wildlife,
presented good or bad water quality.
The point here is that none of my projects
could have been possible if it weren't for opportunities
like CoderDojo and AI4ALL, who exposed me
to the computing field at an early age.
Knowing how impactful learning about computing
at an early age was for me, I set out
to do the same for students in my hometown.
I founded a computer science and artificial intelligence
club at my former middle school
for students who are eager to learn about AI and CS.
My club serves as a resource for
middle school students to gain knowledge
and exposure at an early age about computing,
something that is uncommon in our community.
Most importantly, my club plants a seed of curiosity
within students, or at least I hope.
Over half of the students are future
first-generation college students,
come from socially disadvantaged backgrounds,
and for the most part, this is their
first exposure to the computing fields.
Since the beginning of the club,
I have become motivated to learn
about these fields outside of the classroom.
Michael, a current club member, said he is
"interested in a computer science
"and thinks it is very amazing."
That seed of curiosity I had instilled with me
inspired me to create change within my community.
In addition, statistics have shown
that less than 20% of females occupy tech jobs in the U.S.
Thus to help alleviate the gender disparity in CS,
I founded a Girls Who Code club
at my high school to help bridge the gender gap.
Both academic programs contribute to my ultimate goal
of ensuring that communities with diverse set
of individuals have educational
opportunities set available to them.
Moving forward, what most excites me
about the future of AI will be seeing
how it is used within different fields,
such as environmental health discipline.
To end off, I strongly believe inclusive diversity
is important in human-centered AI
because everyone should be part of solutions
to complex problems that are meant to address society.
It is important to have representation
of all types of groups across the social spectrum
to cultivate different perspectives about issues.
I would like to thank the entire AI4ALL community
for their continuous support throughout the years.
Thank you so much.
(applause)