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SPIN Student Stories: Get to Know Jie Ying!
When Jie Ying joined SPIN as a seventh grader learning from home during the pandemic, she felt isolated and disconnected. SPIN’s virtual STEM programs gave her a space to explore coding, 3D design, and teamwork for the first time. What started as curiosity quickly grew into confidence. Over three years of hands-on projects—from biomimicry to food science—Jie Ying discovered her love for problem-solving and realized she could make a real impact through science.
Where Curiosity Found Confidence: Jie Ying’s STEM Story
When Jie Ying first joined SPIN as a seventh grader learning from home during the pandemic, she was isolated from friends and hungry for connection. SPIN stepped in with virtual STEM learning, giving her a space to explore coding, 3D design, and teamwork for the first time.
At the time, she imagined becoming an English teacher. After joining SPIN Girls (now SPIN Forward), her curiosity grew—and so did her confidence. Three years of hands-on projects, from biomimicry to food science, helped her discover she was good at math, loved problem-solving, and could see herself making a real impact through science.
Photo: Jie Ying and friends Sophia and Ximena at SPIN Fellows event.
Today, Jie Ying is a senior at Kentridge High School, a Running Start student at Green River College, a SPIN Fellow, and SPIN’s 9th Grade Cohort Lead. She plans to pursue pre-medicine at the University of Washington and dreams of becoming a family doctor serving immigrant and under-resourced communities.
Jie Ying at Lab Day after teaching her food science curriculum to her 9th-grade cohort.
SPIN didn’t just introduce her to STEM—it strengthened her voice. Once shy and afraid of public speaking, she now mentors younger students, helping them build confidence and curiosity of their own. She credits SPIN’s mentors for shaping her path, opening doors, and showing her what leadership can look like.
Having experienced the gap in learning opportunities after moving to South King County, she knows how essential free STEM programs are.
“SPIN creates a safe space where we can try new things, make mistakes, and still know we’ll be supported,” she says.
When young people like Jie Ying are encouraged to be bold and curious, they don’t just build futures—they strengthen communities.
“I want to see more STEM access in South King County,” she says. “SPIN is one of the only programs opening those doors.”
That’s why she hopes donors will see the value in keeping SPIN programs free. Your support helps make that possible, keeping our programs accessible to all youth.
SPIN Student Stories: Say Hello to Addi!
Addison’s SPIN journey began at just nine years old, teaching Minecraft at a SPIN camp for unhoused youth. That early spark of curiosity grew into a decade of exploration, leadership, and confidence. Through SPIN Forward and the SPIN Fellows program, Addi learned to take initiative, pursue opportunities, and hone her passion for engineering. Today, she’s a University of Washington Presidential Scholar majoring in industrial engineering and minoring in leadership, carrying forward the lessons she first learned at SPIN.
Engineering Her Future: Addison’s Path from SPIN to UW Presidential Scholar
Meet Addison, a SPIN Alumna and University of Washington Presidential Scholar, majoring in industrial engineering and minoring in leadership.
Addi’s SPIN journey began at just nine years old, when she helped teach Minecraft at a SPIN camp for unhoused youth. She didn’t know it then, but that moment sparked a decade of curiosity, confidence, and leadership.
“My mom just told me to help out,” she laughs. “I didn’t realize at the time that it would shape everything about my future.”
Photo: Addi with her family after being presented with with Presidential Scholar award from the University of Washington.
She went on to join the second cohort of SPIN Forward (formerly SPIN Girls) and later became a SPIN Fellow.
“I’ve always been interested in engineering,” Addi shared, “but through SPIN I learned how to take initiative and go after opportunities on my own.”
Addi interned via SPIN at Adaptive Biotechnologies (see image below), a pivotal experience that revealed her leadership potential.
Photo: Addi and other SPIN Fellows interning with Adaptive Biotechnologies
“My mentor told me, ‘You should look into a manager-type role because you demonstrate strong leadership skills.’ That conversation completely changed my perspective. It’s why I wrote my college essay about SPIN—and I’m sure it’s part of why I received the Presidential Scholarship at UW.”
The Presidential Scholarship is a full ride and awarded to only 17 in-state applicants—that’s less than 0.01% of undergrads admitted to the university.
Today, Addi is studying industrial engineering at UW and interning at Boeing. She also serves as a peer educator, mentoring first-year students. In a full circle moment, she's now helping younger students navigate the gender imbalance in the sciences she experienced growing up:
“There are only four girls in my class of 25,” she says. “Being part of SPIN helped me believe I belong in this space. Now I get to pass that confidence on to others.”
When asked what SPIN means to her, Addi doesn’t hesitate:
“I would literally credit almost everything that I’m doing right now to SPIN. It was the most impactful thing I was ever a part of. Investing in programs like SPIN is investing in a future where it’s normal for young women to believe in themselves. Programs like this shouldn’t be treated as experiments. They should be the standard.”
For seven years, Addi’s participation in SPIN was made possible because of donors like you. To ensure all young people have access to STEM education, SPIN is committed to keeping our programs free. As federal funding is cut, as well as shifts away from programs that center diversity, equity, and inclusion, we are relying on your generosity to keep SPIN available to all.
As STEM Paths Innovation Network celebrates a decade of sparking curiosity, we’re also looking ahead. The next ten years demand bigger, bolder action to prepare young people like Addi for the future, and we can’t do it without you.
SPIN Student Stories: Meet Jaidyn!
This season, we celebrate ten years of SPIN and the students, mentors, and community partners who make learning, leadership, and belonging possible. For Jaidyn, gratitude runs deep. She joined SPIN as a reluctant seventh grader, unsure about giving up her Saturdays—but her mom saw the potential before she did. Over time, Jaidyn found mentors, peers, and opportunities that transformed her experience. “I found trust and relationships with those in my cohort,” she says, “because we were all going through the same thing.”
Finding Trust, Friendship, and Opportunity Through SPIN
This season of gratitude, we’re reflecting on ten years with STEM Paths Innovation Network and all the students, mentors, and community partners who make this network of learning, leadership, and belonging possible. Since 2015, all of our programs have been free for students, thanks to donations from supporters like you.
For Jaidyn, gratitude runs deep. When she first joined SPIN’s program as a seventh grader, she wasn’t exactly excited about giving up her Saturdays.
“It was my mom’s idea,” she laughs. “She saw the potential before I did.”
Over time, that reluctant beginning turned into something life-changing. Through the SPIN Fellows program, Jaidyn found a circle of peers who understood her, mentors who guided her, and opportunities that opened new doors.
“I found trust and relationships with those in my cohort and mutual understanding because we were all going through the same thing.”
Photo: Jaidyn and SPIN friends at the Discover BMB 2023 conference hosted by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Today, Jaidyn has come full circle, now on staff as SPIN’s 10th-grade Cohort Lead and Program Coordinator. She teaches a curriculum on environmental justice, helps plan each lab day, and connects students with the same kind of mentors who once inspired her.
“I’m super excited to give back to the program that gave me access to relationships, connections, and academic and professional growth.”
Her gratitude also fuels her dreams for the future. Now a Business Marketing student at Green River College, Jaidyn hopes to start a family-owned agricultural business focused on food security and community gardens, building generational wealth while giving back to others.
“SPIN isn’t just about STEM. It’s about helping you become the best version of yourself and giving you the tools to succeed, whatever path you take.”
Jaidyn and SPIN friends at the Museum of Flight Field Day.
As SPIN turns ten, we are deeply thankful for alumni like Jaidyn who embody what’s possible when young people are supported, encouraged, and believed in.