What We Do
TAF was founded in 1996 to help reduce the opportunity gap in education and bring more youth of color to STEM-related disciplines and careers. Since then, school reform has not produced the types of lasting gains we need, but TAF has persisted. Our programs have seen most of their graduates to college, and many of those have since returned to their communities as invested, articulate role models and leaders.
Today, TAF is a valued partner with public education offering three programs:
TechStart - An elementary school STEM-education program designed to expose students to and prepare them for the world of STEM. TAF designs a STEM-rich curriculum and teaches alongside public school teachers during the school day.
STEM Up - An after-school STEM program in which students learn and practice advanced STEM skills, and get ready for success in high-level courses in high school.
TAF Academy - A 6th-12th-grade public “partner school” focused on STEM. We use interdisciplinary, project-based learning to prepare students for college.
All of our programs are successful in not only test score performance and graduation rates, but in other measures we deem more important for student success:
- Confidence in learning new skills
- Teamwork and collaboration
- Ability to organize projects and manage time
- Leadership
- Public speaking and presentations
- Demonstrating grasps of topics in a variety of ways
- And yes, proper use of technical tools