On April 9th, Breakthrough Training Center had the pleasure of demoing three of our Entrepreneurship teams at Project Invent's Demo Day X San Diego hosted at e3 Civic High.

Project Invent features a design thinking, Arduino-based curriculum that emphasizes working with a Community Partner to interview, identify problems, and iterate designs with. This was our second year participating in Project Invent after team Earth Ice participated last year in a virtual Demo Day X.  We've seen amazing results incorporating the education at Project Invent into our own project based learning, collaboration-competition team-based Entrepreneurship program. 

​COVID-19 presented Breakthrough Training Center’s Teen Entrepreneurship Workshop unprecedented challenges: pivoting to a completely virtual model using a combination of online communication tools, discovering how to forge strong team dynamics despite never meeting in-person, and ideating and executing sustainable business concepts that could be carried out even in the midst of a pandemic. In the midst of all of these unique challenges, our students thrived and our coaching team adapted, embracing the hurdles as new opportunities to innovate and cover uncharted territory. Using a combination of in-class lessons, working group sessions, business models, guest-speakers, and other resources, our coaching team, under the direction of lead coach, Ray Chou, remained resilient. And our efforts paid off!

​On Sunday, May 17th our entrepreneurship students competed in the 17th annual Project Echo High School Entrepreneurship Business Plan Competition, sponsored by the UCLA Anderson School of Management. Over 200 students and over 36 teams competed in the virtual pitch competition and eleven teams took home prize money ranging from $250 to $2000, in addition to valuable personal and professional skills.

​Here’s what Ray had to say:
"The award feels like we're on the right path in terms of what we want to accomplish with our school and programs. I'm grateful to Project ECHO for the opportunity, recognition, and most of all providing a platform for young high schoolers to experience entrepreneurship firsthand."

​We’re so proud of all of our teams who competed in Project Echo—every student who followed through, persisted, and dared to dream BIG with us!

Hello Everybody! Today I'd like to tackle what I'm sure is a hot topic in education right now... the digital classroom!

So first of all a lot of teachers are scrambling because of how quickly this all happened. Most kids left school on Friday only to learn they all of a sudden have an extended holiday until April or May. We're not sure right now, but it's looking like the rest of the school year might just sort of be paused or cancelled right now.

Teachers are probably in a similar boat. I'm sure they've all had to react tremendously fast to put infrastructure in place ASAP. Those that bother to do so, anyway. A lot of our students are reporting back with mixed results. A lot of people are trying to figure out the best way to do it. We had our first online day this past Sunday and it went okay. 

To support our classes, we decided to go with three platforms: Google Classroom, Discord, and Twitch. Below I'll get into a little bit of why for each one. 

​---------------------

Google Classroom we've already been using to manage our classes for a couple of years and it's ability to index and log assignments is fantastic. We use it primarily as a means to organize the class including attendance, assignments, and readings.​

An important thing to remember is that a certain amount of your students just will not bother checking things. It doesn't matter how many emails or notices you send on the various platforms, they'll just have their heads in the skies and somehow miss the notifications you send out. To notify students digitally, it's best to send them pings throughout all of the digital outlets you use + email if possible. Even then you know the drill... 

Discord is a chat platform similar to the work platform Slack. It features a centralized server with many sub channels and voice channels along with robust link and image sharing. It's a younger skewing platform that a lot of kids use to play games with each other and build communities. I think in a lot of ways the functionality of Discord is streets ahead of Slack... and it's free. 
​

​Each team of students has their own voice and text chat which only they can and the Coaches can see. We do this so teams have their own private space in which to work. I think this is a very important concept when it comes to virtual work - privacy is key! Nobody likes it having someone look over their shoulder 24/7. Give the students room to do their assignments by themselves and each other instead of having them on the line the entire time.  Crucially, too, the kids are on it and know how to troubleshoot if need be. 

Twitch is a streaming platform for gamers and gaming culture. I use Twitch because outside of pornographic webcam platforms it's the most widely used and adapted stream platform in the world. The kids are familiar with twitch because again games and we stream our lectures at the beginning and end of class to the audience, 
​

​
Personally, I don't think it's important to see students when you're teaching them virtually. More important is communicating with them when you need to (which can be accomplished by voicechat or text) BUT - I do think it's important for them to see you. A teacher's job is to lead and guide and I believe seeing someone communicate directly is necessary for that. Speeches have always been an important part of leadership :D.

-----------

Next time I'll tackle some lessons I've learned after another week! Design, test, and iterate! 

​Coach Ray

Today marks the second day of what has been novelty coined as 'Social Distancing.' In the United States we are in semi-quarantine, mandated somewhat by the various states of emergency but for the most part voluntarily enforced. I suppose you could really go out and get a pint if you really wanted to, but do you really want to in a time like this...? The answer is yes, I really do. BUT! - in the interest of the public at large, I will refrain and enjoy my pint at home, thank you very much. 

Usually Sunday's are my busy teaching day with Breakthrough running six sessions of classes between 10 am - 6 pm. We announced a postponement of classes Friday and will reevaluate the situation as the weeks go by. A lot of things are probably going to change because of the Wuhan.

Businesswise, I think it's reasonable to expect a 'new normal' as a result of what's happening to the economy... survival of the fittest, or most well equipped to deal with the sudden change in social ergo economic behaviors. Last recession, many businesses did not rehire at a rate commiserate with their economic recovery as they realized they could be equally or more efficient with less bloat on salary. Something similar is probably going to shake out when this is all said and done.

In terms of my business, one 'bold prediction' I'll make is that this looming economic downturn will catalyze the adoption and popularity of online classes. That all said, creating online coursework has been on one of Breakthrough's 'To-Do' lists for quite a while. Might as well use the time I would otherwise be spending at school teaching designing, and doing it with you, my loyal blog audience! Anyway~~
------------------

Models

The first thing I do when designing something is look at what's already out there in the current market, who does what well, and what can be improved. Here's what I'm looking at as models for our own curriculum:

International Writing Program: MOOC Packs

Did you know that MOOC stands for 'massive open online course'? I did not until I visited this site! I am all for sharing resources and free education... hence this blog. I am also all about making money off of education... hence my school. Here's to hoping for much more of both in 2020! Anyway... back to analysis.

So, I really like how each class is broken down in the IWP program. Each MOOC-PACK (module) contains five sessions, further broken down into four segments per lesson:

1. Readings. These are themed around the lesson, which is introduced in a short 2-3 page (let's say 500 word) introduction. That PDF contains links to three works - one primary (longer, and the centerpiece of the lesson), and two more supplementary pieces. This is designed as a college level course, so the reading load is quite heavy. Just at a glance I'd estimate between 40-60 pages total for each lesson's worth of reading.
2. Discussion Questions. These are robust, paragraph long multi-pronged open ended questions designed to provoke and guide thought within the lesson. Students are asked to informally 'address' the questions but are not given a written assignment corresponding to the question... ie, they don't have to write their answers down. That's probably a good thing, as if you were to really think deep about these questions you could hammer out an entire paper's worth of material. 
3. Podcast and Craft Talk. The 'lecture' portion of the class is broken down into two: a Q&A with a noted work relating to the topic of the lesson, as well as a more traditional lecture styled as a 'Craft Talk' from the educator to the student. The two prong approach is interesting. In my own teaching experience, Q&A's are very stimulating to students as the format engenders both authority (this person must be important!), casualness (hey it's just questions - not too serious). Notably, both lecture portions total no more than 45 minutes with the craft talk falling around the fifteen minute mark. 
4. Writing Assignments. The 'homework' portion of the lecture consists of a selection of writing prompts for the student to engage in. It does not give primacy for one over the other and instead implicitly asks the student which one most inspires them. I think this tactic works for a creative writing class especially as different authors will have different needs regarding their own work. It's also clearly designed for a mature adult student as I think when you're teaching to primary or secondary school students you have to assume lowest common denominator / effort a little bit. The questions are again multi paragraphed and designed to prompt deep thought just as much as they are designed to be jumping off points. There's also a Peer Response Question that encourages and directs feedback from fellow students.
   

A couple of random thoughts post-analysis of the IWP model:
Engagement

• This has to be the primary design concern for online classes. I mean, how do you ensure that students actually do the work? In the case of IWP, since these are free classes, they really don't. However, in an effort to stimulate engagement (and dare I say it - learning!), the questions they provide are deep, robust, and thought provoking. They're trying to lead you to the water of duality (in the case of the 'Fake News' module I have opened), but that's a lofty task. 
• I can see classes for a lower level of students foregoing the questions in lieu of more groundwork - short answers, multiple choice, that type of thing. Easy to grade, easy to make sure students are 'engaged' because they have to do and turn in the work to get the grade. Those are the online classes I hated the most though - the ones that felt like a bunch of busywork strung together. Ugh. 
  

Comprehensive Orthodoxy.  

• At the end of the day we're looking at Reading, Critical Thinking (Questions), Lecture, and Writing. That's pretty much the bread and butter of all learning, right? So IWP isn't reinventing the wheel there.
• I do love, however, how well laid out everything is. Here is what you are going to learn. Here are the lessons you need to learn it. Here are the sections for each lesson. Here is what each section contains. The taxonomy (one of my favorite words, shout out Mrs. Swift for introducing me to John Gray) is laid out so clearly for the student. They know exactly what to expect just at a glance. Nice. 

MasterClass

So, a little bit of background: I asked for a copy of Aaron Sorkin's Screenwriting Master Class for Christmas back in... 2017, I want to say? My sister got it for me, bless her soul, and ... I stopped on lesson 7/35 - the one titled "Writing Habits.' I know I know. Ze Irony is Delicions. Before I get into why I wasn't engaged let's get to the break down! 

• Twenty Four Lessons, each around 15 minutes in length. Format is the master craftsmen (Aaron Sorkin) talking directly into the camera kind of off the cuff. Seems like it was all shot over the course of a day or two, with high production values. Two camera setup with one on sticks (tripod) shooting straight ahead and another floater camera getting a little closer and moving around. 
• Corresponding Workbook PDF for each lesson, which are disappointingly each about 1 page each, about a three hundred word recap of the lesson. Another 2-3 "taking it further" follow up assignments and 1-2 assignments, which sometimes aren't even really assignments. For instance, the Story Ideas assignments basically amount to: okay, go write now! -_-
• Recorded Workshop Class broken down into 8 sessions, around 8-15 minutes each. So about an hourlong workshop class. This content I actually really like as I think Sorkin is great in the back and forth with students but by himself his train of thought is all over the place. 
• Social Media Component on the page of lesson. A wall where other users can post anything... ostensibly related to the lesson. 

And some takeaways...

• As you can probably tell, I didn't really like this Master Class and didn't think it was really worth it. Part of it I think is that Aaron Sorkin, as much as I admire him as a writer, is not a great teacher. He admits as much in the first lesson, but he stutters quite a bit, his train of thought is hard to follow, and a lot of what he goes over is kind of basic writing 101 stuff. 
• That said, I did like the portion where he interacted with students. He becomes a lot more personable with others in the room and it's great seeing the back and forth that occurs in a 'mock' writing room.
• The supporting materials for this online class are also kind of meh. It seems like the focus was on high production values and killer craftsmen instructors, but not on the actual curriculum therein. Everything focuses on the video and you can strip out all the other components - the notes, assignments, social media - and it would not make that much of a difference.
• How important is a video lecture component for an online class? Can you get away with just an audio podcast style? How much of the video should be scripted versus off the cuff? Things to think about...

------------------------------

That's a lot of words! I'm going to check out some more classes like MIT Open Courses and whatever else is online and free. If you have any recommendations or thoughts, let me know in the space below! 

- Ray 

(PS I don't know how to get rid of the bullet point at the bottom of this). 

The world seems like a particularly scary place this week. Markets are down all over the world, Italy and China are under quarantine, and it seems like this is only the beginning of the COVID19 (previously known as Corona, previously known as the Wuhan) epidemic. Everyone's been saying we're overdue for a recession, and a global emergency seems like as good a bet of any to be the catalyst for such a thing...

So anyway, that's been on my mind lately! I've also been thinking back to the last time there was a recession, way back in 2008. I was but a wee lad of 20 just entering my junior year of college at NYU. Though the ground events were happening hard and fast right mere miles away, I really had no sense of what was going on or what it all meant.

To be honest, I didn't think it would affect me at all. It was that perfect blend of upbringing, ego, and youth - see, I was always taught that if you work hard and keep your head down, you'd be able to succeed no matter what. That's the mantra we're given at school and at home. Do your work, do it well, let the rest sort itself out. 

Except it doesn't always shake out like that, does it? Sometimes you get swept up in a thing out of your control, like a global pandemic or global recession. Or a global pandemic leading to global recession. Anyway - the point I want to reiterate is that I had no real sense of what a recession was or how it could effect the last time one happened, and I'd be willing to be a couple of pennies that many of my students are in the same position I was back in 2008! 

So... part of my week has been spent wondering how to best teach global economics and recession in a way that will be understandable to my kids. And of course the subtext behind all understanding is teaching. 

Off the top of my head, here are some ideas I'm floating around:

Gamification - The economy is an interaction of participants. Creating some sort of barter /. currency game that shows how global supply chains work and how they can be disrupted by something like COVID seems like a cool way to learn. Caveat: I don't think my own understanding of the economy is strong enough to abstract something so complicated into a fun and meaningful game. So hmmm.

Group Discussion - Always a good choice as it gives you a framework to bounce off of and when done well can create agency and participation among students. The key to any sort of group discussion is building enough kindling of information for the students to be able to take and run with... and if there isn't enough ideas bouncing around.. well, we've all had bad group discussions in the past, right? I'll probably implement some form of a group discussion and supplement it with a list of say ten questions that help stimulate debate. Alright, let's just hash it out here:

1. What have you heard about COVID-19?
2. Are you worried? Are your parents? Why or why not?
3. How do you think COVID-19 affects you?
4. Have you been personally affected economically by the pandemic?
5. Have you heard of any cancellations stemming from COVID?

Yeah see, questions can be hard sometimes. I don't think the list above is especially             good. They're mostly leading and a little shallow. Nonetheless, it's a starting point.                I'll try to brainstorm better ones before class this Sunday. 

3. Article Sharing - Coach Miles recommended Marketplace's How worried should we be about the COVID-19 and the economy? I guess the litmus test is if something helps you understand, it stands to reason it will help your students understand. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. On the flipside, articles take a while to read and process and letting that take over a 1-2 hour session is also not the most engaging or stimulating use of a student's time. The radio show above is 27 minutes... hm. 

-----------------------------------

So yeah, I don't really have the answers right now. I don't think anyone does. Some other random thoughts associated with COVID19 / the economy:

• I think it's interesting how the coverage/perception of China's drastic quarantine measures have changed over the last 200 hours. Maybe.... it's conceivable that they did mostly the right thing? They most assuredly stifled the spread of the disease. Guess it's up to the rest of us to argue whether the method and morals therein. 
• Asian-Americans are more impacted by the Wuhan for obvious reasons, but honestly I think a bit of brevity goes a long way in assuaging fears. My students don't like it when I call it the Wuhan - they think that using that kind of language will negatively color perceptions of Chinese. To that I say... whatever man, I'm freaking Chinese! I reserve the right to call it whatever the heck I want. I also reserve the right to be offended if others call it what I don't like. 'Tis a tricky thing, being human. 
• The best explanation of the last recession I recall came South Park in 13x03 Margaritaville. One of my favorite episodes of tv like ever.

-----------------
Okay, that's it from me. Keep calm and quarantine on!
​- Ray

Ask most teachers and they'll tell you that the ideal learning scenario is when students become passionate about a subject and begin actively engaging, participating, and self-teaching themselves with minor course correction or feedback from the instructor. How,, though, to reach that point? 

One of the major challenges I face as an educator is how to motivate my students. Because we are an after school academy, I can't leverage the threat of a permanent grade that has a bearing on a student's potential future like a traditional school. 

How then, do you get kids to do anything? Sure, some of them will of course willingly participate and engage, but I've found that without some sort of external pressure it can become extremely difficult to get students going.

Here are three things that I've found helps motivate my students: 

1. Collaboration

When students work as a group, they have to hold each other accountable. The external pressure from a group environment is often strong enough to get them to participate, engage, and learn as a collective unit. Sometimes a strong leader in a group can lift the others up as they influence the whole by creating a culture of accountability and respect. Sometimes a student may have to step up in a void of ability or leadership and discover they are capable of more than their previously held perceptions. When collaboration works, it's a beautiful thing. 
 
On the flip side, sometimes group projects can go spectacularly wrong. This in and of itself is a learning experience, in my opinion. After all - most paths in life revolve around working or getting along with others. Better to learn young how you function in a group ( emotional intelligence) so that you can better deal with those types of environments that become more inevitable with age. 

The worst case scenario? The diffusal of responsibility. Instead of students holding each other accountable, egos dictate that of course it is not the individual's fault and the others share a greater burden in the collective failure. Fingers are pointed, frustrations raised, and excuses multiply in a petri dish. Parents can also be particularly guilty of this. Not my child, it was clearly X, Y, or Z's fault. 

Success has many parents but failure is almost inevitably always an orphan. 

2. Competition

Competition provides two important drives: deadlines and awards.

Deadlines focus students on the task at hand and create linear pressure to perform and deliver by a certain date. As a deadline approaches, any party will naturally work harder to meet the deadline and deliver a final product - whether in the form of an essay, pitch, deck, speech, etc. As a creative, I know that without hard deadlines projects and tasks sometimes feel intangible and loose. A hard and firm date gives me something to aim for which in turn transforms ideas into deliverables.

And who doesn't love an award? Awards are a confirmation of our abilities and perception of self. They help fuel confidence: in my opinion one of the most important predictors of future success. Some students naturally have a ton of confidence, while others need their confidence built up. Competition is one process by which confidence can grow leaps and bounds with a great result.

On the flip side, missing too many deadlines can become habitual for a student, and habits are hard to correct. Similarly, confidence is a fragile thing at the best of times. A series of bad results or lack of external confirmation can lead someone to question their own worth. It's important as an educator to remind students that while competition is important, it does not ultimately define who you are unless you let it. 
 
3. Project-Based

Projects ask people to work together to create something. By nature, projects are defined by their participants within a given prompt. That prompt may be something like a skit or play, science experiment, or business proposal. Regardless, all projects require participants to create, and creation implies ownership. 

Project based learning thus inherently encourages students to take ownership of their educational experience. Whatever they create is in some ways a reflection of their personalities and abilities. The presence of an open ended, abstract prompt creates agency through the inherent question: what do you think is a good idea?​

My students are accustomed to being told what is good, worthy, or valuable. Read these works of literature. Learn these equations. Acquire these skills. And yes - all of which they are being encouraged to learn has of course been vetted by countless educators, agencies, and society at large. Being told what to do is at the opposite end of asking someone: what would you do? 

Projects thus put the onus on students by asking them to evaluate, set criteria, validate, and execute. These are all things most of us working adults have to go through daily, so why not emphasize that in what we teach?

On the flip side, sometimes project scopes can be too broad, the prompts too abstract. The endless possibilities of the infinite can become paralyzing. In writing, this is known as "the blank page syndrome." Any sort of education requires guidance - I don't think you can just say "here's a project! have at it!" and be done with it. Doing so only compounds the issues inherent in both Collaboration and Competition.... Projects are a mulitiplier that cuts both ways. 

------------------------------------------------

What have you found effective in motivating students? What is the ideal situation for you to learn in? 

Let me know in the comments below!

​Coach Ray

Last week, Breakthrough wrapped up its first ever pilot session of Civics in Action! 

​

The focus of the class  action of the class was on a civic-oriented project each student had to conceive of and execute as a team. Each project was driven by a simple ethos: be the change you want to see in your community. 

Along the way, students constantly examined and defined what that phrase meant to them. Some of their assignments included studying civic movements past and present, examining power structures, q&a's from civic activists, and taking part in class-wide volunteering for other social ventures like Street Soccer USA.  
​

​

Our kids volunteered for Street Soccer USA's 

​

The last of the civics projects wrapped up last week. Some of the ideas included a movie night for learning disabled kids, a kids' crafts day where future proceeds benefit a nonprofit, a dance day, and a charity gaming tournament benefiting Extra Life. 
​

​The student response to the class has been overwhelmingly positive. Nothing's better as an educator than feeling like you gave your kids a rewarding and meaningful experience. 
​

We started the Civics program because we believe that now more than ever students need to learn how to take control of their futures. We also wanted students to experience firsthand the difficulties with actually creating something meaningful. They all had their share of setbacks. As Coaches, we tried to instill in them a never-say-die attitude, stressing that their ultimate success rested on their ability to solve problems. We also stressed how oftentimes that means just grinding it out. 

Deal with it. Fix it.  ​

Although the projects wrapped with various degrees of success, each student felt that they had learned a lot from their experiences. I know I did!

Civics in Action will be back next year, bigger and better than before!

- Ray
​

This year, Breakthrough again brought its Entrepreneurship Class to participate in the High School Business Plan Competitions of Project Echo at UCLA ​and of Diamond Challenge. Six teams represented Breakthrough this year, and of the six teams, two took back the first and second place in Project Echo's Technology category competition while one made finalist in Diamond Challenge. 

Project Echo is a non-profit organization formed in 1996 to provide at-risk students with vocational skills and entrepreneurship training and experience but has since expanded to include students from diverse academic and socioeconomic backgrounds.  The annual Business Plan Competition is held at UCLA Anderson School of Management. The students pitch ideas which includes their R&D, financial analysis, industry surveillance, and marketing in three categories of food and beverage, retail, or technology.  Executive level volunteer judges evaluate the teams and award cash prizes.  

The Diamond Challenge is one of the largest entrepreneurship competitions for high school students. It was formed by Horn Entrepreneurship, a cornerstone for entrepreneurial activity based at the University of Delaware. The Diamond Challenge shrives to empower the next generation "through entrepreneurial education and enrichment opportunities in order for students to create, capture, and deliver value from new ideas, regardless of their future career path" (Diamond Challenge).

Our teams have been preparing since November, learning the skills necessary to effectively develop a business idea. Our teams' business plans included smart water bottles, a language learning app, and a time management tracking app. 

All our teams had a very edifying and fun time pitching their ideas and being able to participate and watch other teams. We're proud to announce that among the winners of Project Echo were Breakthrough's own Kai and Pendulum! Kai​​ is made up of Elvin Chang, Selena He, Wendy Liu, and Jack Wang, and Pendulum​ is made up of Merry Jiao, Edward Jin, and George Liu. The two teams took 1st and 2nd place in the Technology category for their exceptional and professional business proposals. Another team that deserves an honorary mention is team Euphyte, consisting of Ada Duan, Kristy He, Daina Zhao, and Raymond Zhao, which made it to the top 6 teams in the Diamond Challenge.  

For more on Project Echo, click here.
For more on the Diamond Challenge, click here.

For more on our Entrepreneurship and other programs, click here. 

It's here! The day where tens of thousands of hopeful applicants have their dreams dashed, while a lucky few experience probably the best day yet of their young lives. 

For those who feel rejected and dejected - I'm sorry. The odds were stacked against you from the beginning. Use the experience as an opportunity to fuel your ambition. You have the best years of your life just ahead of you, and no matter where you go I know that you will grow. 

The Los Angeles Times published a very interesting Op-Ed two days ago: 

Pretty timely from them, right?! And now timely of us to piggy-back with a blog post.

Some interesting thoughts in the article:

"Asian Americans are more likely than other groups to believe that attending an elite university — and preferably an Ivy League one — is a necessary step to a successful career."

That statement rings so true to me. Through my involvement with ACE: NextGen  I've often thought about the general disparity and apathy among different Asian American groups. Unlike other minority groups, we just don't care to move and act as a voting block. The one thing that binds us is our shared value of education. As a group, I would venture to say that Asian Americans care more about education than any other minority.

"There is at least one clear reason for the emphasis on prestige: Elite credentials are seen as a safeguard against discrimination in the labor market."

Asians, discriminated against? Say it ain't so!

"White men and women are twice as likely as Asians to hold executive positions. And while white women are breaking through the glass ceiling, Asian women are not."

Oh. Well, that sucks. 

"Asians are often viewed as smart, diligent, focused, quiet and technically competent — traits that make them desirable employees, but not desirable leaders."

Philosophically, I think a lot of the stereotype stems from a broad and abstract differences in how the two cultures - Occidental and Oriental - view the world. Much of eastern philosophy stems from the idea that we are part of a greater whole, that time is cyclical, and we are just one small part of the vast universe. 

Western philosophy on the other hand dictates the importance of the individual,  imposing a theory of the universe as solveable as opposed to ultimately unknowable. 

Asian Americans and other two culture kids have the unique opportunity to experience and rectify both points of view. And maybe, just maybe, that should be seen as an advantage? 

"But our research also indicates that Asian Americans are less likely than white and black Americans to engage in civic activity, which is strongly correlated with corporate leadership."

Totally true, and why Breakthrough has decided to start a Civics program. 

------------------
It's hard to change broad cultural stereotypes. Understanding, education, and action. We at Breakthrough employ all three to train our students, the majority of whom are Asian American, to prepare them for a better future, and to hopefully one day tear down that bamboo ceiling.

​Ray