About Me

Hi! My name is Maya De Los Santos 

     The first time I ever had the chance to explore S.T.E.M. was in 8th grade when I decided to take a Junior S.T.E.M. course my school offered. I quickly fell in love with the process of working alongside my peers to design and test creations that would solve fun challenges. Having this experience encouraged me to apply to my current high school, where I am a student in the Academy of Engineering and Design Technology. Throughout my time here, I have had the opportunity to learn in-depth about the various fields of engineering and recognize that electrical engineering is what I enjoy learning about the most. I explored my interests further through participating in hackathons, becoming a FIRST Robotics team member, and teaching younger students about S.T.E.M. through various tech camps and workshops.
     Through my electrical engineering research, I have been able to work with my fellow faculty and peers to combine my love for both electrical engineering and environmental conservation. My project utilizes I2C sensors protected in a water-proof casing to measure external factors that affect coral reefs and transmits the data over Wifi to an IoT website that allows me to visualize the data in graphs easily. My research has provided me the chance to present my work at our sister school’s science convention in Japan, and I am looking forward to implementing it in Israel this coming March.
     The summer before my junior year, I was accepted into the AI4ALL 2018 Princeton program, where I learned about artificial intelligence, machine learning, natural language processing, and the Internet of Things with an added emphasis on their relations to social policy. Along with my AI4ALL peers, I traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with artificial intelligence policymakers. Through our discussions of A.I. policy and governance, I became aware of the importance of applying ethics to technology.
     Pursuing my passions for technology and social policy will provide me with the foundation I need to help those who are less fortunate or do not have the resources to ensure they are living their best life. My experiences have helped me realize that successful engineers serve as a bridge between the solutions invented and their ethical and fair integration into society. I look forward to continuing my education and surrounding myself with people who will work alongside me towards a diverse and progressive future.