Rhea Yadav Awarded Aspire2STEAM Scholarship

Aspiring Computer Scientist Uses Coding Skills for Social Good

ANKENY, IA, UNITED STATES, June 18, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Aspire2STEAM.org, which provides its scholarship and recognition program to young women and girls working toward careers that require education in science, tech, engineering, the arts, or math (STEAM), has awarded Rhea Yadav an ASPIRER scholarship.

Rhea is a Computer Science major and Data Science minor preparing to enter her sophomore year at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, New Jersey. “Rhea has a very clear vision for how she wants to serve humanity with her coding skills,” said Cheryl O’Donoghue, Founder at Aspire2STEAM. “We are in awe of all she has already done to transform her vision into reality and her fearlessness in tackling the unfamiliar and unexplored. She is well on her way to making a positive difference in our world.”

Early in her high school years, Rhea went with her family to take an “Introduction to Computer Science” class at the local library. She was captivated and intensely curious as to how the computer could understand the code she was learning to create. “I found myself learning a variety of syntaxes that I could string together creatively to communicate my intention to the computer—learning, essentially, the language of technology itself,” said Rhea. “My coding ventures did not stop there. I wanted to become a champion in computer science.”

To help accomplish her goal, Rhea opted to take computer programming as her main program of study in high school. She sought out additional Java programming classes outside of school and developed fundamental competencies in Java, HTML, and CSS. Additionally, she participated in summer coding programs, where she deepened her knowledge in web and mobile app development, and enjoyed collaborating with her peers through participating in weekend hackathons.

“What I never really noticed until recently is how much coding allows me to tap into a creative side of me that I had never really expressed before,” said Rhea. “I love experimenting with different methods to find a viable solution. And I never expected to find such fulfillment in the elegance of code.”

Rhea’s list of unique achievements is a long one. She served as a Student Researcher and Community Council member for iFeminist; co-founder of the Impact Coders Coding Program; mentor with the Rubisco STEM Mentorship Program; member and Secretary with the Mu Alpha Theta Math Honor Society; and Public Relations and Events Team member with Little League Coding.

She also has received recognition from Kode with Klossy as a Web Development, Mobile Application Development, and Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Scholar; the National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) Aspirations in Computing (AiC) as a 2024 National Collegiate Award Finalist; 2023 New Jersey Regional Affiliate Honorable Mention High School Awardee; and Teen Ink Nonfiction Academic Publication Editor’s Choice for her work The Evolution of Women in Technology: From the Early Eighteenth Century to the Modern Era. Her list of awards received for her coding and mathematical abilities is also impressive.

Rhea looks for ways to use her coding skills for social good and enjoys creating applications and websites to spread awareness about tackling challenges, which she encourages her peers to embrace. When given a choice, she prefers the unfamiliar and unexplored. Said Rhea, “When exploring the unfamiliar, sometimes this can lead to disappointment and regret. Other times it can lead to joy and happiness. But without question, choosing the challenging route always leads, in one way or another, to positive growth and change.”

Rhea has always found that research projects are the best way for her to learn subjects deeply. After graduation, she envisions a future where she can help a tech company improve their users’ experiences through research and software development. “I see myself using my coding and technical skills to help strengthen the company’s values, goals, and mission,” said Rhea. “I want to assist and advance humanity’s use of technology through one line of code at a time.”

About Aspire2STEAM

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Established in 2018, Aspire2STEAM.org is a charitable 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, which has earned Guidestar’s Gold Seal for integrity, transparency, and accountability. Over the years, it has become known for its scholarship and recognition program to support young women and girls who are working hard—aspiring—to achieve careers that require education in science, tech, engineering, the arts, or math. Aspire2STEAM is committed to helping women and girls with a hand up over the incredible barriers of scholarship award inequity, rising education costs and student debt, and the real, ever-present opportunity barriers that keep them out of most male-dominated industries.

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Cheryl O'Donoghue
Aspire2STEAM
+1 630-253-8861
email us here

Meet Rhea Yadav, recipient of Aspire2STEAM Scholarship!