Covenant House Newsroom

Allan is just completing his first semester at the innovative Make School and can’t wait to get to the more advanced courses that will lead him, in two years, to a bachelor’s degree in applied computer science. “That day when I start the data science classes, I’ll be so excited!” says the former Covenant House Missouri resident.

Allan already loves the Make School. “The teachers are enthusiastic about what they teach and come from all sorts of backgrounds. They’ve also worked in the [tech] industry at companies like Google, so they have firsthand experience and a special kind of credibility,” he says. 

Allan made it to the Make School in San Francisco and the start of a brilliant career by his sheer determination, honed talent for math and science, and the relentless support of Covenant House Missouri. 

“I very much appreciate Covenant House’s model of being there to support you without restriction,” he says. “I still have the card that everyone signed at Covenant House when I graduated high school. I’ll definitely keep that.”

Allan grew up with his older siblings in the U.S. (his mom, with whom he remains close, lives in Mexico). But when Allan was a junior in high school, his family did not have the means to house him any longer. He had nowhere to go.

The first shelter he came to didn’t meet his needs. He felt constricted and defeated by rules that impeded his learning; he’d been devoted to studying computer science since the eighth grade. He would stay at school in the computer lab as long as possible, he says, then return to the shelter and work on paper-based tasks in the darkness of his room, which was frowned on. 

All that changed when he came to Covenant House Missouri. “Covenant House respected my wishes,” Allan says. “It’s like you were there to prop me up in whatever way I chose. Covenant House is a safe place to stay and to do my own thing. I definitely appreciate that.”

Allan excelled at school, where he was a member of the Technology Student Association and served as a math tutor. Even the COVID-19 pandemic couldn’t deter him from his studies. He seamlessly made the switch to virtual learning and accessed his coursework directly from his apartment in Covenant House Missouri’s Transitional Living Program. 

He didn’t dwell on canceled social events. Instead, he was happy he could take his Advanced Placement (AP) test remotely, and he loved watching online the national commencement speech given by former President Barack Obama, which celebrated his graduating class.

Now at the Make School, Allan is exploring his potential and his new surroundings, making friends, and investing in his future—a future he feels favors his interest in technology, especially working on apps, web development, and artificial intelligence. “I think the pandemic may have the effect of pushing us more toward automation and accelerating ecommerce,” he says.

But that’s not all. Allan is already thinking of the many ways he hopes to give back. “I have this whole mental image that I’ll come back to Covenant House and talk to the youth,” Allan says. “‘Have some free laptops on me!’ I’ll give back in that manner,” he says. “I’ll give them a story they can relate to.”