The current best-selling book, , chronicles the thrilling story of a group of groundbreaking scientists whose string of discoveries launched a scientific revolution that will make possible medical miracles including the ability to fight off viruses, cure diseases and have healthier babies.  We are grateful for one of those miracles as we receive our COVID-19 vaccine shots and see hope for an end to the pandemic.  It is not surprising that the importance of gifted and talented education is noted in the book. 

Feng Shang, who immigrated from China to America with his mother at the age of 10, began his path to biology in the 1990s with his Des Moines, Iowa middle school鈥檚 Gifted and Talented Program.  He recalls that initially through his regular school science classes he thought biology was uninteresting.  He found activities such as dissecting a frog on a tray to identify its heart unchallenging and the curriculum was focused on memorization.  In contrast, his gifted and talented program featured a regular Saturday enrichment class in molecular biology that focused on DNA and how RNA carried out its instructions with an emphasis on the important role of enzymes in the process. He was able to do many hands-on experiments including one that transformed bacteria to make them resistant to antibiotics.  This class inspired his eagerness to learn and discover in the field of biology.  For high schoolers, Des Moines had a gifted and talented program called STING (Science/Technology Investigations: The Next Generation), which allowed talented students to work at local hospitals and research institutions.  Zhang鈥檚 Saturday teacher helped him get selected to work at the gene therapy lab of Methodist Hospital.  He had the opportunity to work with a molecular biologist who assigned Zhang progressively sophisticated experiments.  One of these experiments deconstructed the HIV virus and examined how each of the components worked.  Part of the goal of the Des Moines Gifted and Talented Program was to help students compete in the Intel Science Talent Search, a national competition.  Zhang鈥檚 virus experiment won him third place and $50,000 which he used to help pay tuition for the next step of his education journey at Harvard University.  Today, at only 39 years old, he is considered one of the most transformative biologists of his generation.

Feng Zhang is a prime example of the impact that gifted and talented programs can have on turning American students into world-class scientists.  Gifted children need a much more challenging education than can be offered in the regular classroom.  Gifted and talented programs such as those offered at the Institute for Educational Advancement, provide advanced enrichment classes and workshops that fill a critical gap in our public education curriculum. These challenging and creative programs focus on a wide variety of STEM and other topics taught by experts from such institutions and organizations as Caltech, NASA, Harvard University, Art Center College of Design and Walt Disney Animation. Our high potential youth are the scientists, innovators, engineers and leaders of our nation鈥檚 future and the educational opportunities they receive make a difference in their ability to reach for their full academic and personal potential.  Gifted and talented education programs provide the support and inspiration our brightest students need to thrive and reach for the stars.

鈥淭ell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.鈥�

Benjamin Franklin鈥檚 quote embodies the sort of impact a mentor can have in a young person鈥檚 life. Mentors are truly extraordinary individuals who are willing to share and dedicate their time, expertise, knowledge and skills to positively influence the lives of young people. They get them involved in relevant work and activities that extend beyond the confines of their classroom and nurtures their interests and passions.

This summer, 优蜜视频 introduced its reimagined mentorship program for high school students, EXPLORE, which is short for Externships Providing Leadership Opportunities for Research and Education. In its inaugural year, 22 highly motivated and exceptional high school students were selected to extern at 12 mentor sites throughout the Greater Los Angeles area, including Art Center College of Design, Caltech, Children鈥檚 Hospital Los Angeles, CoachArt, Kadenze, and various departments within UCLA and USC. While most students were Los Angeles natives, others traveled from out-of-state, including Rhode Island, Illinois, and Washington, to spend a summer immersed in research work. They represented a diverse population of learners from different cultural, social, and economic backgrounds. They also brought with them unique talents and an impressive list of academic and personal accolades.

To kick off the program, all externs participated in a day-long Professional Development Orientation hosted at the Art Center College of Design, one of 优蜜视频鈥檚 long-standing mentor sites. During orientation, students met their fellow externs, participated in team building activities, listened to a talk from Caltech Mentor Dr. Lynne Hillenbrand, and learned about professional skills to prepare them for their externship.

For most high school students, there are few opportunities in a traditional classroom to delve into an area of study for an extended period of time. Their daily schedule and academic grind often forces them to spread their focus on a laundry list of classes, assignments, exams and extra-curricular activities. EXPLORE externs, however, had the unique opportunity to apply their learning beyond the classroom and pursue their passions and interests in a specific field of study. Each extern engaged in two to six weeks of summer research work and projects with mentors who were preeminent professionals in their field. Externs worked in a variety of professional settings, from research laboratories and university classrooms to business offices and creative tech spaces. Externs based in academic lab settings were exposed to the often arduous, but intellectually stimulating, task of reading research papers on their topic, running lab tests, learning new computer programming language, compiling and analyzing data, and contributing their findings in a final research paper. Conversely, externs based at creative sites participated in hands-on workshops to strengthen their artistic skills, collaborated on projects with college-level students and professionals, gained exposure to new technologies for producing artistic works, and learned about the important roles and operations within a successful organization. Externs not only conducted real-world, college-level research, and were exposed to a variety of professional environments, but they also learned valuable life skills like taking public transportation to work and navigating their way around large college campuses.

Upon completion of the program, externs presented their final research or project during EXPLORE鈥檚 Culmination Celebrations, held at the Barder House on July 8^th and July 22^nd. During these events, we celebrated the accomplishments of our externs and learned about the impressive work they completed at their respective sites. Students presented on such research topics as: statistical trends in the use of the word 鈥渆volve鈥� and its variants, liposome synthesis, drawbridge message authentication, analytical technologies to measure human performance, and necrotizing enterocolitis. The hard work and level of sophistication of each research project was evident as each extern spoke eloquently and proudly about their work. There is no doubt that these talented young people will be paving the way for innovative research in the future.

In addition to having a brilliant cohort of EXPLORE externs, the program would not be possible without the support of our Mentors who cultivated their skills, talents, and interests. 优蜜视频 would like to extend our gratitude to EXPLORE 2016 Mentors:

If you are a high school student who would like to gain real-world experience and study a specific field of interest, consider applying to EXPLORE next summer! Check out the for updates about deadlines and future mentor sites.

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Ni帽a Abonal graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a B.A. in Business Administration and a minor in Elementary Education. She later returned to LMU to earn听her Master of Arts in Educational Studies. With a decade of experience working听in educational non-profits, she has taken on various roles including tutoring K-8 students in all subject areas, providing SAT prep, serving as a college advisor for a virtual college access program, and coordinating internships for high school students. During her free time, she enjoys volunteering, hiking, exploring new places to eat, and spending time with her family. She is eager to continue her passion working with youth at 优蜜视频 and hopes to continually seek innovative ways to improve the quality of and access to educational resources for all students.

鈥淚 am happy to be in a room of too鈥檚,鈥� said Betsy Jones, 优蜜视频 President, as we concluded 优蜜视频’s Summer Spotlight this year. 鈥淲e are all too鈥檚 鈥� too emotional, too smart, too intense鈥�.鈥�

Tuesday, June 8, was a bright evening of community, learning, and friendship as 优蜜视频 and its community gathered at the University of Southern California for dinner and a time of sharing. Eight 优蜜视频 Apprentices, who studied Industrial Design under Stan Kong at Art Center College of Design, displayed their impressive concept design sketches 鈥� pieces of art that would later become final projects. Posters, books, and sculptures created by Academy students, Caroline D. Bradley Scholars, and Yunasa campers were also scattered about USC鈥檚 Vineyard Room, along with plenty of photos of Academy kids at The Huntington Library, Art Collection, and Botanical Gardens; Yunasa West campers frolicking in Colorado; and CDB Scholars who convened for the Bradley Seminar in April.

After dinner, 优蜜视频鈥檚 Program Coordinators introduced speakers from each of 优蜜视频’s programs. Min-Ling Li, the valiant leader of 29 Apprentices, began by announcing both Alex T., who is studying shock waves with Dr. Eliasson at USC, and Robert, an Industrial Design Apprentice.

Alex鈥檚 speech was an expounded acrostic he created from the letters of 优蜜视频: I 鈥撯�淚 am Alex,鈥� he began. This is Alex鈥檚 second year as an 优蜜视频 Apprentice, and he thanked the Caroline D. Bradley Scholarship program for introducing him to an opportunity that would change his life. 鈥淥nce you are a part of 优蜜视频, you support it, and it supports you,鈥� he said. E 鈥� 鈥淓ager. That is what the students here are,鈥� Alex continued. Finally, A 鈥� 鈥淎pprentice…we are all Apprentices, because every day we learn something new. One thing I learned while I was here is of all the gifted children being overlooked by teachers. 优蜜视频 works to find them and help them come to terms with their giftedness鈥nstitute for Educational Advancement: intelligent, eager, able,鈥� he concluded.

Robert, who came to the Los Angeles-based Apprenticeship Program all the way from Miami, is a first-year Apprentice who described his experience as a time of extremely hard work and the unbelievable opportunity to 鈥渟tudy at a school he hopes to get into in a field he hopes to make a career out of.鈥�

One of 优蜜视频鈥檚 earliest Caroline D. Bradley Scholars, Ryan, spoke next: 鈥淚t鈥檚 much more than a monetary gift 鈥� it鈥檚 a community,鈥� he said of CDB. According to Ryan, CDB helped him develop the confidence to be whatever it is he wanted to be. When it was time to apply for college, the CDB coordinator helped him apply. Ryan opted for Harvard, where he began by pursuing an education in engineering, ended up in neuroscience, found himself in musical theater, and finished his degree in creative arts. Now Ryan produces movies 鈥� Lego movies, of late.

, stood upon a chair to reach the microphone and talked about how, in the past year at 优蜜视频, he has taken a Shakespeare class from a professional actor, advanced his math skills with a teacher who made it fun, made his first short film, painted himself blue using ice and an infrared camera in his first Physics class, and was introduced to the Spanish language for the first time. 鈥淚f that wasn鈥檛 enough,鈥� he said, 鈥溣琶凼悠� has given me this opportunity in public speaking!鈥�

Finally, 10-year-old Alexander A., who also stood on a chair to speak, described Yunasa as a place where he is able to be himself, a place where he feels loved and accepted by all the people around him. At Yunasa and Yunasa West, Alexander has learned practical ways to help him calm down when he feels tense and emotional. He talked about Senior Fellows Patricia Gatto Walden, Ph.D., and Michael Piechowski, Ph.D., who have given him hugs and engaged him in conversations about deep and interesting things. Alexander鈥檚 favorite Yunasa activity is the low ropes course because, he said, 鈥測ou get to work as a team to get through obstacles.鈥�

When the young brilliant pundits of 优蜜视频 finished their enlightening speeches, Betsy Jones told a story of a girl she met at Yunasa West this year. This young lady explained to Betsy that when she feels sad, she spends time with her 鈥淭oo People.鈥� She has always been told that she is 鈥渢oo intense, too distracted, too talkative, too quiet, too much,鈥� so her stuffed animals became a family of 鈥渢oo鈥檚鈥� who provide a safe place where she can exist without feeling chastised. 优蜜视频 has been around for 16 years, and it is still one of the only organizations in the world where, as Betsy said, these young brilliant individuals 鈥渃an grow and learn and be and do whatever it is they want to do.鈥�

Summer Spotlight was an evening of illumination 鈥� a light shone upon a community of 鈥渢oo鈥檚鈥� and the programs that help them to grow, succeed, learn, and feel safe to be themselves.

Take a look at more photos from Summer Spotlight 2014!

Are you interested in learning more about 优蜜视频 programs and our impact? Sign up for our email newsletter, which provides regular updates on the work we do as well as resources on giftedness.

Every gifted person has a unique story. The following story is part of a series of posts depicting the many faces of gifted by highlighting gifted children and adults we have found through 优蜜视频 programs. 优蜜视频鈥檚 鈥� mentioned in this story 鈥� links gifted high school students from across the country with mentors who advance each participant鈥檚 skills through the application of knowledge and exposure to real world experiences.

Monica Lienke
2001 Apprentice, Industrial Design at Art Center College of Design (Art Center)
Law Student, Stanford University

Twelve years ago, Monica Lienke was one of the first 优蜜视频 Apprentices at Art Center. She worked closely with Stan Kong, a leading design educator in Los Angeles. She described her two-week experience as 鈥渓ong hours and a lot of work, but extremely gratifying. I remember feeling that I had learned a ton by the end of it. But probably the best part of the program was getting to know the other participants in the program, who were all incredibly talented and unique individuals.鈥�

Monica focused on product design at Art Center and designed a concept for an ergonomic gardening tool. She said she chose a design-oriented program because she liked that there were creative and visual art components to it. Her days were spent in and out of the classroom with lectures, discussions, model-making, sketching classes and field trips.

After high school, Monica went on to earn a B.A. in political science from UC Berkeley and is now at Stanford for law school. 鈥淎fter graduating, I worked for a year at the Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy, a political economy research institute on campus. I then spent almost three years in the legal department at Google. Going into my job at Google, I actually hadn鈥檛 intended to go to law school, but I found myself really enjoying my role there, which involved learning about technologies, helping to realize innovative ideas, and working with amazingly smart and passionate people.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檓 still in law school and working on the side for a small early stage start-up that was co-founded by an engineer and a law school graduate who met each other at Stanford鈥檚 Hasso Plattner Institute for Design. The product is a website for people with a creative project (like a product design, start up, or artistic work) to discuss their projects with a broader group of people, get feedback and guidance, and develop supportive communities around their projects to help them succeed. The A.I. component of the site is a recommendation engine that scans a person鈥檚 social networks to suggest people they know who could contribute to whatever issue they are discussing on the site. My role in the start-up is multi-faceted, but I mostly focus on user engagement and business development. I鈥檝e loved getting to work with a great team on a product whose underlying goal is to encourage more people to undertake and participate in creative endeavors.鈥�

Monica still takes some design-oriented classes and hopes to work with a start-up company or for clients that create and innovate.

When I asked Monica what she鈥檇 say to others who are considering 优蜜视频鈥檚 Apprenticeship Program, she replied, 鈥淚t鈥檚 an amazing opportunity to explore an area you might be interested in and meet people who will inspire you!鈥�

Does the Apprenticeship Program sound like a good fit for a high school student you know? 2014 Apprenticeship information and applications are now!

Dr. Ford is the Vice President and Chief of Surgery at Children鈥檚 Hospital Los Angeles and a Professor of Surgery and the Vice Dean for Medical Education at the University of Southern California鈥檚 Keck School of Medicine. He has been an for seven years and has mentored 17 Apprentices.

Mr. Kong is the Head of Product Design at Pasadena City College and a faculty member of the Graduate Industrial Design program at Art Center College of Design. He has been an 优蜜视频 Apprenticeship Mentor for 14 years and has mentored more than 150 Apprentices.

What did our guests enjoy?

Assorted hors d鈥檕euvres and cocktails were served, including the signature drink for the evening, the LeMOONdrop. Wine was generously donated by John and Pam Craig.

Delicious dinner was catered by celebrated local chef Claud Beltran of Pasadena鈥檚 The Eatery. Table decorations included beautiful centerpieces donated by Orchard Supply Hardware.

Thanks to generous donations by individuals and local businesses, there were more than thirty one-of-a-kind silent auction packages available, including:

• VIP tickets to tapings of The Big Bang Theory and Jimmy Kimmel Live!
• Behind-the-scenes tours of the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
• Artwork created by past Apprentices, CDB Scholars, and CDB parents
• Gift certificates to local businesses
• Resources, services, and enrichment opportunities for gifted children and their parents

Attendees had the privilege of speaking with Mr. Stan Kong and Dr. Henri Ford, two incredible individuals who we are lucky to have as members of our community, and the evening provided an opportunity for many different members of our community to meet each other. Guests also enjoyed a heartfelt presentation by past 优蜜视频 Apprentices thanking Dr. Ford and Mr. Kong for their mentorship.

The growth of 优蜜视频 was palpable over the course of the evening, as all 优蜜视频 programs were represented and Mentors, program participants, board members, parents, supporters, and staff joined together to celebrate.

The bright young minds we serve were involved in every aspect of the event. 2012 Caroline D. Bradley Scholar Talya Klinger created beautiful, hand-blown glass awards for each of our honorees. Two Caroline D. Bradley alumni, Bo Yan Moran and Tanner Scharch, and 2013 Apprentice James Tom played live music for the Patron and Open Cocktails. During the evening鈥檚 program, 2008 Apprentice Thomas Zenteno spoke about his Apprenticeship with Mr. Kong, and 2010 Apprentice Clara Wang spoke about her Apprenticeship with Dr. Ford. Many former Apprentices of Dr. Ford and Mr. Kong were also featured in a video tribute to the honorees.

听

Thank you again to all of our event sponsors, donors, and guests. Your participation in this event has played an integral part in our fundraising efforts for this year to help us continue to provide unique and valuable programs and services to bright young minds. We couldn鈥檛 do it without you!

Please help 优蜜视频 continue to shine! If you have not yet had the opportunity to donate or if you would like to make another contribution, we would greatly appreciate your support by clicking here.

Jennifer is 优蜜视频鈥檚 Marketing & Communications Coordinator. Her position includes more traditional communications media such as newsletters and brochures, but it also involves much more modern technology, including email newsletters, the 优蜜视频 blog and website, and social networks.

that 65% of today鈥檚 grade school students will end up in jobs that do not yet exist. I can tell you that my job, which includes a great deal of social media and online components, looks very different than what someone in a similar role would have done when I was in grade school. So, how can you prepare for a career field that doesn鈥檛 exist yet? I鈥檓 going to offer some advice that helped me get to where I am today.

Find a skill that you enjoy and go from there.

“Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge.” 鈥� Carl Sagan

If you enjoy a skill that can translate into several career paths, hone it. I have always loved languages and writing. So, I took every opportunity I could throughout my education to develop a command of language (English and Spanish for now, but I鈥檓 working on Italian and French next, just for fun) and better my writing skills. I entered poetry contests. I kept a 鈥渏ournal鈥� of my thoughts and ideas and often wrote pages of reflections solely for the purpose of writing. My job now may be working with a variety of media that were rare 鈥� if in existence at all 鈥� when I was young, but at the root of much of my work is writing. I write every single day. It might be as simple as a tweet of less than 140 characters, or it might be an eight-page newsletter. Regardless of the length, the medium, or the purpose, honing my language and writing skills has helped me do my job each and every day.

Certain skills are also valuable across fields, so develop those, too. Written and oral communication skills are extremely valuable in any field. Critical thinking and problem solving are also skills that will take you far in any career. suggests building skills in key areas defined as 鈥渁nything humans still do better than robots.鈥� This includes 鈥渟olving unstructured problems and working with new information.鈥�

Find mentors, including at least one who has seen an industry 鈥� any industry 鈥� change over time.

Learn from that person how he or she adapted, how jobs and strategies changed. This will help you see for yourself what skills are necessary for the ever-changing business landscape. This can include academia, as well. You should also build relationships with a wide variety of people both inside and outside of your area of interest. While you are still in school, these can be teachers or peers.

Learn how to be a good employee, regardless of the field you enter. Be willing to learn new things every day.

Here are a few tips on how to be a good employee, most of which stress the importance of constantly learning new things:

• Learn from the people around you. Respect coworkers and their ideas.
• Learn how to respectfully voice your opinions and ideas. This can be difficult, especially for introverts, but your ideas are valuable to the discussion.
• Be willing to do something that doesn鈥檛 exactly fit your job description.
• Take responsibility for your mistakes, and learn from them.

Be flexible. Be open. Be innovative. Be well-rounded.

Gifted individuals are used to thinking outside the box. Go with that instinct. Just because something has been done a certain way in the past does not mean it has to be done that way in the future. Be open to new ideas, new ways of thinking, and new ways of doing things. Be open to new possibilities.

Don鈥檛 pigeonhole yourself into a narrow job description or field of study. 优蜜视频 Apprenticeship Mentor Stan Kong, who is the Head of Product Design at Pasadena City College and a Graduate Industrial Design program faculty member at Art Center College of Design, thought he was going to be a graphic designer until he just happened to take an industrial design class. Opening yourself up to new opportunities and possibilities can really help you find your niche.

While you are still in school, get a well-rounded education and learn from a variety of disciplines. For example, using statistics and other mathematical functions to evaluate data is necessary across a variety of careers. Though much of my job is writing and executing an overall strategy, I spend a bit of time each week looking at web, email, and social media analytics to evaluate our marketing efforts and revise our strategy as needed.

Challenge yourself.

Work on difficult and varied research, which will help you develop critical thinking skills. Keep learning new things, as the landscape in any field will continuously shift. Get experience in a wide variety of areas. It will help guide you toward 鈥� or away from 鈥� a particular field by seeing it applied hands-on, and the lessons you learn can often be applied to almost any other discipline.

Read. A lot.

I鈥檓 not saying you have to read everything, or even that you have to read in a particular genre. I encourage you to vary your reading and include something that truly challenges you once in a while, but the most important part of this tip is that you learn new things and experience others鈥� ideas. I read everything from books to blogs to journals to magazines on topics ranging from pure entertainment to giftedness to business to education to personal success. I鈥檒l admit that I don鈥檛 typically enjoy a few particular genres, so I generally stay away from those unless something really strikes me. And that鈥檚 okay. You don鈥檛 have to read everything. Just read.

Go beyond the job.

I know I鈥檝e said this quite a bit by now, but I can鈥檛 stress it enough: No matter what you decided to do, keep learning. Remember, you probably won鈥檛 stay in the career you choose forever, especially if you are a gifted person with many different talents and interests. These skills will help ensure that you can transition to another option if you so choose. You might just end up on another, unexpected but much more fulfilling path, like one that leads you to spread the word about the unique needs of gifted children.

What skills do you think are most important in preparing for a variety of careers?

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Speakers included Evie Lazzarino, Associate Dean for Communications and Marketing at USC and 优蜜视频 Apprenticeship Program Mentor; Elizabeth Jones, President of the Institute for Educational Advancement; Louise Hindle, Academy Instructor; and local students who have participated in each of 优蜜视频鈥檚 four different nationwide. We also shared student work samples, and attendees enjoyed dinner and plenty of conversation.

But, the biggest highlights of the evening came from student speeches. Here is just a small taste of what they said.

Marko reflected on his experience as an Industrial Design Apprentice at Art Center College of Design:

鈥淚 am happy to say that the experience I had during the three weeks here lived up to my highest expectations. Mr. Stan Kong, whom the Apprentices have been working with, made each day in class highly productive and, most of all, enjoyable. The progress my peers and I made was not just technical, but also highly spiritual and social. We covered many topics that broadened our knowledge in various fields that connected to design as well as our personal lives. One of the things we talked about most was the development of our passion towards the things we do in the present, including what we are here for – Industrial Design. This made us all look back at the past and recall the key points in our lives that were significant to the development of the way we think and do things now. Many of us immediately recalled times ranging from our early childhood to our teenage years that we thought to be strongly connected to our decision to practice art and design. From playing with LEGOs to being fascinated with cars or fashion, we all had something that we found enjoyable. As time passed, we turned it into something we wanted to spend more time doing. We started learning more about the things we loved, leading us to become better and more creative in doing them. I think that most of us here, if we go on to follow a career in any creative field, will look back at our past and find that our time at Apprenticeship has been one of those key components in our life that made the road to greatness enjoyable.鈥�

Matthew, an Academy student and first-time Yunasa camper, talked about his experience at Yunasa West this year:

鈥淚 had many significant experiences at Yunasa West that benefited me greatly. Psychosynthesis helped me be more calm and have a more positive outlook on things. My spiritual self has been awakened by the Spirit Journey and Sacred Connections. Stephanie Tolan shared with us her book and the incredible powers of the mind. I was taught about recognizing our intensities and how to deal with them by Michael Piechowski. I learned that I can hold in my emotions so they don鈥檛 get out of control. I have made many new friends who I can contact and are a lot like me鈥�.I enjoyed Yunasa immensely, learned so much from it, and plan to go back in the future.鈥�

Sneha spoke about her experience working on media relations and social media at the USC Marshall School of Business as a 2013 Apprentice.

鈥淭he assignments I was put in charge of in my Apprenticeship definitely gave me a glimpse into the rigors of the business world. Whether it was conducting competitive market research on Facebook pages, websites, and Twitter feeds, developing a logo, or writing a news release, every assignment showed me that communications is the fusion of business, marketing, journalism, and public relations鈥�.

鈥淲hat made me see life in a different light at Apprenticeship is the collection of four virtues I see in each of my Mentors and advisors: selflessness, dedication, determination, and passion. I have realized that with these four values, you stop seeing your job as work; you see it as your life and utmost happiness. On behalf of all my fellow Apprentices, I would like to thank our Resident Advisors and each and every Mentor for being embodiments of selflessness, dedication, determination, and passion. The knowledge and wisdom you all have imparted to us is truly priceless and will undoubtedly help us excel in the future. We hope that we have contributed as much to your lab, classroom, or office as you have to us and our futures.鈥�

Thank you to our speakers, the 2013 Apprenticeship Mentors, and all who attended the 2013 Summer Spotlight. You made this event a great success.

Every gifted person has a unique story. The following story is part of a series of posts depicting the many faces of gifted by highlighting gifted children and adults we have found through 优蜜视频 programs. 优蜜视频鈥檚 鈥� mentioned in this story 鈥� links gifted high school students from across the country with mentors who advance each participant鈥檚 skills through the application of knowledge and exposure to real world experiences.

Thomas Zenteno
2008 Industrial Design Apprentice at Art Center College of Design
Current Student at Art Center College of Design

Thomas Zenteno grew up in Miami, Florida, and came to Pasadena, California, in the summer of 2008 to participate in the 优蜜视频 Apprenticeship Program at Art Center College of Design. I talked to him about his experience.

鈥淚 started the 优蜜视频 program when I was 17, in the summer between my junior and senior year of high school. I was lucky enough to attend a visual arts magnet high school called Design and Architecture Senior High (DASH), where I was able to study Industrial Design as a focus. My teacher, Ms. Kwiatkowksi, selected myself and three other students from her program to participate in the 优蜜视频 program that helped shape all of us as friends and designers.鈥�

Even in Florida, Thomas was familiar with the reputation of the Pasadena-based college. 鈥淚 had met students who had gone to the 优蜜视频 program in previous years, and all of them came back with exceptional work and much more knowledge both in design and in life experiences. I also knew of the prestigious name Art Center had in the design world and a lot of my favorite product, transportation and entertainment designers graduated from Art Center. I remember Art Center sending a promotional book about the different majors of the school to DASH, and I would spend hours reading through the descriptions of students and looking at the quality of work in those pages, which was key in inspiring me to go to Art Center above any other design or art school.鈥�

When I asked Thomas what he did as an Apprentice, he said, 鈥淪tan Kong, my Mentor for the program, had a small class of nine students, and together we were able to work on both personal and class projects. We learned a lot about design thinking and how we could use product design to help improve lives around the world. The class was treated as a studio atmosphere where we would learn from Stan or our T.A.鈥檚 K.C. Cho and Wayne Johnson. Afterwards, we would be given an assignment to practice in class as well as homework to bring in the following day. We would pin the work up on the walls and critique projects one by one. Our projects ranged from alarm clocks to devices that safely relocated bats form one area of a city to another. For final presentations, we were required to make a physical model of our design. We learned a lot about time management, discipline and work ethics that I鈥檝e carried with me at Art Center as a student and into my professional practice working as a freelance concept artist.鈥�

Although Thomas studied industrial design in high school, the Apprenticeship Program provided a positive challenge for him. 鈥淚 believe one of the biggest challenges was to produce the amount of work we were required as well as back up our designs with good research and thinking. Although it was stressful, and many nights I would stay up late working, it was well worth the amount of learning I gained in just three short weeks. The mileage and knowledge I gained gave me a great foundation to start my portfolio to get into Art Center and truly opened up a lot of doors for me.鈥�

Thomas said there was a big change in himself going from that summer experience back to high school. 鈥淚t was my first time really being away from home, and you could definitely see a change in my drive and direction to focus even more during my senior year at DASH. Many of my friends and classmates got 鈥渟enioritis,鈥� where they slacked off for their last year of high school, while the four of us who went to the 优蜜视频 program continued to push ourselves to be the best in our class. As a result, we received some of the highest scholarships in our class. Two of us went to Art Center College of Design, while the remaining two went to College for Creative Studies (CCS). I credit a lot of my work ethic to the 优蜜视频 program.鈥�

Thomas is currently majoring in Entertainment Design at Art Center. 鈥淚 chose Entertainment Design because it blends a few of my favorite sensibilities in design and art. At DASH, my foundation was in product and transportation design, but I had a great love for figure drawing and painting as well. Entertainment Design allows me to blend all of those sensibilities– characters, environments, vehicles and props for films, video games, animation and theme parks. I try to be as well-rounded as I can, so Entertainment Design seemed to be very fitting since it has a very broad range of applications. Looking back, though, at the root of it all is the fact that Entertainment Design is all about storytelling, and I think that鈥檚 what attracted me to it.鈥�

What are Thomas鈥� future plans? 鈥淚鈥檓 still really young, so there a lot of different ways my life could go. I鈥檝e been freelancing as a Concept Designer since 2010, and I really enjoy working on multiple projects from film to animation. I鈥檝e had a handful of notable clients from Bad Robot to an aerospace corporation, and interning at Warner Bros. was an enlightening experience. I would love to work on films and games for much of my life, but in the end, I would really like to give back by teaching and helping the world out in some small way.鈥�

Thomas is still in touch with some of the other kids who were part of his program. 鈥淎 few of my fellow Apprentices are peers of mine at Art Center as well as others who have gone to other schools. I meet up with them in my hometown of Miami, Florida, occasionally. A lot of the Apprentices are currently in colleges spread out around the country, but quite a few are in Pasadena at Caltech or Art Center. The ones I鈥檝e kept closest contact with are definitely lifelong friends, and we鈥檒l find ourselves at dinner parties or just having a good time out hiking.鈥�

Thomas really benefitted from his time as an Apprentice. 鈥淚t鈥檚 easily a pivotal moment in my life, and I think it really can open up a high school student鈥檚 perspective. It鈥檚 extremely fun to engage in all the different activities that 优蜜视频 provides, as well as the more work-focused part of it. I think you always get what you put into it, and in the case of 优蜜视频, it鈥檚 given me a sort of second family that was crucial to me moving out here from Florida when I was 18. 优蜜视频 truly inspired me to be a better person, and I met a lot of friends I never would have had otherwise; all in all I鈥檓 pretty happy because of it.鈥�

Congratulations to 2011 Industrial Design Apprentices David Acosta and Deven Row, who recently won the *!

The contest, entered by over 150 students from 20 countries, required entrants to use images and market research to develop products that would meet the luxury transportation needs of a 20-30 year old in the year 2025. David received first place with his 鈥淔ordBoard鈥� 鈥� a skateboard type transportation device 鈥� and Deven placed second for his 鈥淓uphoria鈥� vehicle.

Last summer, Deven and David joined 23 other high school students from across the country for 优蜜视频鈥檚 summer Apprenticeship Program. Industrial Design Apprentices, including David and Deven, worked with Mentor Stan Kong at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. They developed key skills like research, sketching, rendering, creative thinking, and model building.

All of the Apprentices spent three to four weeks living in dorms at the University of Southern California, experienced college life, gained real-world experience working with Mentors who are leaders in their fields, and met new people from diverse backgrounds with similar interests and experiences. On evenings and weekends, Apprentices attended cultural events, participated in recreational activities, and explored Los Angeles.

Even before the program, David knew he wanted to pursue a career in industrial design. The Apprenticeship Program helped him gain important skills in the field, particularly researching and designing for a particular consumer, which he used in the Ford competition and will continue to use in the field of industrial design.

优蜜视频鈥檚 Apprenticeship Program is held each summer and matches high school students with Mentors in fields such as science, industrial design, medicine, and law.

Does the Apprenticeship experience sound like an experience someone you know would like? There are still spots available for this summer鈥檚 Apprenticeship program! 2012 Apprenticeships are available in Los Angeles and San Diego, California.

*The competition is no longer running as of 05/21/2024

Share this exciting news and the Apprenticeship Program with your friends!