Steven Teng

Hi, my name is Steven Teng and there were many things in my past that helped shape who I am. However, in order to understand everything, we’ll have to start at the beginning. I grew up in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, and as a child, I wasn’t the ideal student. I vaguely remember getting low grades on my exams and annoying my teachers. However, I changed into a different person from 4th grade and on. My parents started comparing me to other students and how my grades were so low. It was also the time where I joined the school chorus, after several years of trying to get in. My experiences in the chorus taught me that hard work pays off and that I’ll have to work hard to please my parents. With this mentality, I entered Cunningham Junior High. Cunningham helped me academically and allowed me to try different things, such as playing an instrument. I have always loved music and I took the chance that my school gave me to join the school band. After trying hard to learn the flute, I was able to become one of the better players in the band. With everything that Cunningham gave me, I was able to enter Stuyvesant High School. I learned a lot from Stuyvesant and met people that will be lifelong friends.

Outside of Stuyvesant, I got my first job at a tutoring place. At that time, I was extremely timid and did not like talking to people that I didn’t know, especially those older than I was. However, I enjoyed the work that my boss gave me and it required me to communicate with the teachers. After working there for a few summers, I was able to interact with teachers, parents, and students comfortably. These are valuable life experiences that I can only gain by working at places such as the tutoring place that I am currently employed at.

The schools I attended and my work experience helped shape who I am now. These experiences changed me from a troublemaker to a timid boy to someone who is not afraid to speak with others. Now, I am in Baruch College, hoping for a good education. I have two cousins that attend Baruch and I often look to them for help. I hope to do as well as they do in school and live up to the expectations of my family and friends. The thing that I am concerned about is the format of how college classes and college in general is structured. However, I believe that Mr. Medina and Maria, along with my classmates and friends, will help me overcome this worry. I expect to have a lot of fun in Baruch and get a good education.