Darah Khieu

The fellowship has provided so many resources to me to improve upon myself and to set me up for future success in the STEM world. The Career Panels gave me so much insight into jobs in the STEM fields and the Deliverables has helped me improve substantially in my fields of interest and their intersection. The program has certainly changed my perspective on opportunities and high school. The program opened up chances to improve upon my already existing skills as well as discovering new passions.

Darah Khieu is a high school student from Ohio interested in coding, psychology, and creative problem-solving. Her journey into STEM began when her father introduced her to programming, sparking her curiosity about how technology works. Over time, she has explored diverse interests, from building her coding skills to diving into the complexities of human behavior through psychology.

Beyond STEM, Darah is a talented artist and designer. The fellowship exposed her to UI/UX design, and she has created several designs for mobile applications, including a productivity app called Pomotivity and an art software app called Inkblots. She is now exploring no-code platforms to craft websites for apps. Read on to learn about Darah’s love for art, interests in coding, and aspirations to combine the two subjects!

Meet Darah

How did you initially become interested in STEM?

My interest in STEM started with my dad. He was often busy with work and would stay up late writing code on his computer. One night, I walked into his room and asked, “Hey, Dad, what’s that?” He explained that it was code. It didn’t look anything like English to me, but that moment sparked my curiosity about what he was doing and coding in general.

As my interest grew, my dad created a Google Drive to share books and resources with me so I could start learning how to code. Around the same time, I discovered a lot of fascinating YouTube videos about science and health. The combination of these experiences was how my journey into STEM began.

Are there any specific subjects in STEM you’re particularly excited about?

My favorite subjects are psychology and computer science. I love computer science because coding fascinates me, and I enjoy learning about how computers operate. One thing I’ve always been curious about is why computers can only understand coding languages instead of natural human languages like English.

Psychology interests me because it’s all about understanding why we do the things we do and the decisions we make. I enjoy diving into the reasons behind human behavior and uncovering what drives our actions.

What activities and projects are you involved in?

I’m part of my school’s Science Club, and I also participate in an English Festival hosted by Youngstown State University. It’s a program for students in grades 7 to 12 where we read different books and engage in activities related to them. In the past, I’ve also participated in a lot of math competitions. For example, I did MathCounts, and it was really fun and helped me develop a love of math. Before that, math felt a bit tedious, like endless calculations, but MathCounts showed me a new, more exciting side of it.

Recently, I’ve also been teaching myself coding through Mimo, which has been really helpful for remembering things like HTML elements. I’m learning as I go and am hoping to start working on a project this summer.

Outside of school, I love art—it brings me so much joy and helps me express myself. I’m also really interested in UI/UX design. Sometimes, I’ll explore no-code platforms and experiment with different designs until I create one I like. It’s a great way to learn and explore my creative side while also tying it to technology. Right now, I’m experimenting with designing websites for apps. For instance, apps like Notion have their own website, and I’m trying to figure out what a website might look like for my app if I were to design one. It’s a fun way to practice combining my interests in coding, UI/UX design, and creative problem-solving.

Summer Experience

What was your favorite part about the fellowship?

That’s a difficult question—I liked everything about it! If I had to choose, though, I’d say the ideathons were my favorite because they helped me develop new skills and explore areas I hadn’t thought about before.

My favorite ideathon was the first one on app design. It introduced me to UI/UX design and helped me discover my passion for making apps. Through one of the Fireside Chats during the week, I learned about the Pomodoro technique for time management. This inspired me to come up with an idea for an app called Pomotivity. The goal was to make productivity fun and easy by incorporating a gaming element. I used pastel and muted colors to give the app a relaxing vibe and designed a logo featuring a cat in a plant pot as a playful mascot—I was obsessed with cats at the time!

I also really enjoyed the entrepreneurship ideathon where we had to create a pitch deck. My idea for this project was an art software app called Inkblots for laptops and iPads. As someone who loves digital art, I was frustrated by the endless YouTube tutorials and practice required to improve. Inkblots would be an AI-powered app that helps users learn and refine their art skills based on their goals, offering personalized guidance and tutorials.

What was your favorite Fireside Chat from the summer?

My favorite Fireside Chat was Isabella’s. It was the first one of the program, and her message about branching out and asking for help really resonated with me. One of her quotes stuck with me: “If you don’t do something, it’s just merely a wish.” It was a powerful reminder to take action, and it motivated me to start pursuing my goals more actively.

I also really enjoyed Erin’s Fireside Chat on self-reflection. Her advice inspired me to incorporate regular reflections into my routine, and I still do them to this day. Also, I really enjoyed Alexa’s Fireside Chat on productivity. Sometimes I struggle with getting distracted by social media, but her talk gave me practical tips to boost my productivity, and I’ve been working on applying them since.

What was the most valuable lesson or skill you learned?

The most valuable lesson I learned was the importance of reaching out to people and asking for help. It’s not always easy, but taking that first step, even if you don’t feel completely ready, is really important. I realized that starting is often the hardest part, but once you take action, everything else will often fall into place.

I also learned a lot about productivity, which has been really impactful for me. After the program, I continued to try time blocking, but I kept getting stuck trying to create the “perfect” productive day. Eventually, I realized it doesn’t have to be perfect—I just needed to do my best with the time I had. I started small, time blocking just five minutes each day, and focused on following my schedule as closely as I could. That shift in mindset has helped me make steady progress and stay more organized.

What advice would you give to future participants of the fellowship?

I’d say participate in all the events—they’re all so fun, and you learn so much. Office hours were also very valuable. During office hours, I talked to Cierra a lot about design and art. She gave me tips about always designing with the user in mind. I also spoke with Nicole, and she shared a valuable tip about being proactive, which I’ve applied to my day-to-day life. Lastly, I talked to Mandy about her career in art and dealing with uncertainties. All those conversations were really helpful and fun.

I would also encourage you to keep an open mind to new possibilities. For example, I used to be closed off to the idea of entrepreneurship, but after the career panel, I became interested in it as a potential career path.

Future Aspirations

What are your goals for the next five to ten years, and what are your career aspirations?

Over the next 5 to 10 years, my main goal is to keep improving myself and building my coding skills. Beyond that, I’d love to find a way to combine my interests in psychology and technology, and maybe even develop the ‘Pomotivity’ app to help people be more productive!

In terms of a career, it’s still a little complicated. This year, I signed up for an honors biology class. At first, I did not think I’d be interested in biology, but I really enjoyed it! It’s shaken up my thoughts about what I want to do in the future, though for now, I’m still leaning towards pursuing a career in computer science and psychology.

Also, the fellowship really opened my mind to the possibility of entrepreneurship. Before, I thought entrepreneurship sounded too uncertain and relied a lot on luck. Now, I’ve learned that it’s a lot more than luck and relies on taking initiative, solving problems, and being resourceful. I’m not sure yet if I’ll start my own company, but it’s something I’m considering. I could also see myself working at a startup, and the fellowship helped make me more open to exploring this path in the future.