BEAM, in partnership with Jane Street, is excited to announce the second class of Jane Street College Scholars. Congratulations to scholarship recipients Hawa, Ilana, and Bryan. Their scholarships are made possible by the generous support of our corporate partner, Jane Street.
A core BEAM supporter, Jane Street is a research-driven global trading firm and market maker trading a wide range of financial products. Read more about their work at janestreet.com.
Hawa D.
BEAM opened the door to many opportunities for me. In 2017, I was part of BEAM Summer Away, which truly transformed my life. I learned independence, determination, and how passionate I am about the field of STEM. I took courses like logic, graph theory, and combinatorics that made me value perseverance, patience, and teamwork. The abstract thinking intrigued me. I loved how math outside the classroom pushed me to think outside the box and explore different possibilities.
BEAM has also been the support system I could count on. BEAM helped me apply to high school and navigate my high school years. I remember walking through the snow with Sarah, a BEAM staff member, to make sure I mailed my portfolio to Beacon High School on time. BEAM Saturday classes enriched my learning. Algebra 1 and Geometry helped me get a head start in my school courses. Game Theory helped me learn how I could apply math to the real world. Even today I use game theory to help my probabilities at rock, paper, scissors, or to make sure I never lose at tic tac toe. The courses I took at BEAM also helped me complete my non-routine problems at school for extra credit. Biostatistics was a course I took online during the pandemic that I loved. I love biology and computer science and the course taught me there are ways to combine both passions.
In STEM, I always approach every question with a determined and unwavering attitude, committed to seeing it through to the end. It brings me great joy to learn new things and then be able to apply that knowledge to real-world situations. I am deeply appreciative of the ongoing support and resources provided by BEAM, as they have truly been instrumental in helping me achieve success.
BEAM also introduced me to other opportunities that helped me grow, such as my internship at BioBus. For 3 years, I was able to create my own experimental questions, conduct research, collect data, and present my results. During this experience, I learned more about research and further developed my interest in STEM. I was also able to do a summer internship at Memorial Sloan Kettering that introduced me to various jobs in medicine. As a child, I dreamed of becoming a pediatrician. But as I explored various STEM career options, I realized that there are many paths within STEM that also pique my interest. So now, no matter what the future holds, I am excited about the possibilities.
I am truly grateful that BEAM will continue to support me in college, and I am deeply grateful for the scholarship that BEAM has awarded me. Thanks to this generous support, I can pursue my passion for STEM without worrying about the financial strain it may put on my family. This scholarship has truly lightened my load and allowed me to fully concentrate on my academic pursuits. I am certain that I want to major in a STEM field and I am considering majoring in biology and minoring in computer science while pursuing the pre-med track. I also want to take advantage of college opportunities to continue research and explore more interests in the field of STEM. Although I know college will be difficult, I am confident I will succeed because I have the support of BEAM and the skills I have developed through all my experiences.
Ilana O.
If I told my eight-year-old self all the things we have accomplished, I know she would never believe me.
Sunday mornings in Bogota, Colombia, where I was born, consisted of binge watching Disney movies and American shows. I secretly dreamed of having a spacious house with an open kitchen, a walkable distance to school, bike riding on the weekends, and the freedom to not wear uniforms. Life seemed so easy because I didn’t see my character inside the classroom, doing homework, working to make ends meet, or even taking over my younger siblings' care.
When I moved to the States I barely spoke any English, and what I knew, I learned from an Australian CD from the 90s. Naturally, I struggled in many ways, from making friends, to my education. What hit me the hardest was the fact that my American dream had to remain a dream. After I finished 4th grade, my mom searched up “free summer camps nyc” in Google. She made it a tradition each summer, until in 6th grade, she came across BEAM. Naturally, my 6th grade self was not excited about spending a whole summer doing math. At that point in my life, I was finally fitting in, and thus, I just wanted to spend my summer with my newly made friends an hour away from home in Manhattan, eating overpriced yogurt at 16 Handles.
After the BEAM application process and the admissions challenge, the acceptance came as such a surprise as I thought there were smarter kids, who definitely had the right answers. But looking back, I know it was my determination that counted most then and will drive me forward now.
At BEAM, math was challenging and fun at the same time, something I thought was not possible. I made wonderful friends, and I adopted a new patience for math. There was a certain beauty about taking hours, days, and even weeks to solve a problem. I loved it so much that I reapplied for BEAM Summer Away. Once on campus at Bard College, I saw college as a very real possibility for me. They showed me the vision of being at school, the beauty of living in a learning environment, and complicated problem solving in a way applicable to real life.
BEAM changed my priorities as to what I wanted my summer to look like. I desired knowing and learning. BEAM connected me to STEM programs that slowly but surely started reshaping my vision of the American dream.
To this day, BEAM has continued to be a central part of my life, an incredible support system helping me apply to other programs, high school, internships, and now, college. They guided me, and connected me with other kids who attended my high school of choice, Manhattan Hunter Science High School.
Four years later, BEAM was with me every step of the way as I applied to college, double checking every essay, checking in after every email sent, or meetings done, and most of all helping me prepare for one of my biggest accomplishments, the Posse Foundation Scholarship. On December 6, I got the acceptance call to one of their partner schools, Brandeis University. I truly believe that without BEAM’s help I would have never made it this far. Their trust, investment, and energy spent not only on me, but also on my fellow BEAM students, have pushed us to greater heights than I would have envisioned. BEAM’s support will allow me to not put a financial strain on my parents, and focus my energy at school.
My eight year old would have never believed that my American dream now consists of majoring in Biochemistry at Brandeis University, and doing great things in my field.
Bryan A.
My math and STEM journey started when I was in elementary school. Every day I would watch Wild Kratts on PBS. Watching the Kratts brothers save exotic animals from poachers and evil designers trying to steal their fur inspired me to save the animals around me how ever I could, and that’s how I started to love animals.
As I continued to go to school, I always looked forward to learning more about science. The more science I learned, the more my love for nature grew. The fact that there was always more to learn fascinated me and drew me in. But it wasn’t until my summer at Bard College with BEAM that I began to understand how math and engineering work in harmony alongside science. Spending the summer learning about number theory and probability made mathematics fun, and the time spent living as a “college” student gave me a unique environment where I was able to cultivate a new way to learn. Even after that summer, BEAM continued to give me new topics and new ways to learn during weekend classes held at NYU. BEAM gave me a new way to love learning and a new community that was just as curious as I was.
Being a part of a program like BEAM encouraged me to find more programs that allowed me to explore my interests. I spent my junior and senior years of high school interning at the Kenny Lab of Neuroscience at Mount Sinai Medical School, where I learned how to conduct and present research. I matured as a student and came to understand what it was like to follow science as a career. Seeing the inner workings of a medical school and taking on responsibilities that most high schoolers don’t have allowed me to get a glimpse of what a medical career would be like. My time interning at the Kenny Lab further strengthened my love for science and inspired me to pursue a medical career.
It has been curiosity and ambition that have constantly pushed me to search for and become more. My childhood love for animals has turned into a desire to help others and build a compassionate world with STEM at the forefront of the tools used to do so. I will forever be grateful for the experiences and community BEAM has given me. I am confident in my ability to effect positive change and eventually influence a new generation of STEM students who aim to do great things just as I plan to do in my next four years of college.
Congratulations also to BEAM students Emmanuela and Cindy, who are receiving tuition assistance scholarships from BEAM.
Emmanuela B.
BEAM has been extremely integral throughout all the vital stages of my academic career. I started BEAM in 7th grade going to Union College upstate. I fell in love with the encouraging and caring environment that I remained committed to till now as a graduating senior. Growing up I was always really good in my math classes, so I knew BEAM would be the place for me to face a real challenge when it comes to my academics. BEAM was the first place I really saw how vast and complex math could be, yet also extremely rewarding because of the amount of effort and time I learned to put into it.
As a first generation, low income student who has continuously been a high achiever, BEAM guided me during the high school process so I would be at an institution where my knowledge can be fed and I can delve more into STEM. They helped me study for the SHSAT and prepared me for high school math level courses like Algebra 1,which helped me be successful in the class freshman year. I ended up at the highly competitive Central Park East High School.
Throughout the past 4 years, BEAM has given me the opportunity to explore math outside of my high school curriculum with classes like Infinity and Finance, which helped me better understand my future career. This past summer, BEAM supported me through their summer stipend program where I studied mathematical theories and computer science with New York University professors at NYU Center for Mathematical Talent.
Attending BEAM mas made me fall in love with math. There are many things to learn about math, as it's a never ending journey of discovery and growth revealing how powerful math can be at advancing our society. BEAM has fostered my love of math and encouraged me to delve deeper, helping me conclude that I am interested in majoring in economics at Brown University. Similarly to how BEAM is dedicated to helping low income, first generation students achieve success in STEM, I hope to utilize my economics degree to help immigrants financially integrate into American society. As I work towards that goal, this scholarship will provide book assistance to succeed in my classes and keep up with the course work. Additionally, I will be able to take educational trips to learn from Providence city.
Cindy T.
With BEAM’s support, I can happily say that I am proud of the things I have accomplished and the person I have become. I remember joining BEAM in 6th grade, unaware of the massive opportunities awaiting me outside my school and neighborhood. It was the first time I learned to embrace stepping out of my comfort zone and was able to connect with other bright-minded students throughout the city. Throughout middle school and high school, I regularly attended BEAM’s Saturday enrichment classes and field trips.
From those opportunities, I gained new perspectives and explored the many ways math could be applied in the real world. I made long-lasting friendships at BEAM and being able to attend high school with some of the BEAM students made the experience less nerve-wracking and more supportive. During the summer, BEAM encouraged me to apply to summer programs and even helped us throughout the whole process. With their guidance, I’ve been able to intern at the Intrepid Museum, take biomedical engineering classes at Columbia University, and subsequently conduct tissue engineering research at one of their labs. This has ultimately shaped what I want to pursue in the future and fueled my love for STEM.
In college, I plan to major in biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins University. It feels like a dream come true and I can’t thank BEAM enough for their support throughout the long and stressful college process. I decided to pursue BME because my experiences at Columbia University helped me realize the impact of novel research on improving quality of life, such as regenerating instead of reducing the progression of diseases. I watched Dr. Warren Grayson's TED talk on tissue engineering and I was deeply motivated by his explanation of how facial appearance is linked to one's sense of self, and that as biomedical engineers, we have the ability to help people regain their confidence through regenerative medicine. As I look ahead, I hope to be at the forefront of rekindling people's joys and smiles via research.
This scholarship will help me achieve my goals because it will give me the opportunity to attend Johns Hopkins University’s renowned BME program and access their research opportunities on the campus and at Johns Hopkins Hospital. I am extremely grateful for the scholarship as it will ease the stress of affording college on me and my family as a first-generation student.