It’s a Costa Rica proverb shared by his father that guides Kwan Holloway:

“Verdaderos líderes no tratan que conducir, ellos ya hacer” which means, “True leaders don’t try to lead, they already do.” And Kwan has spent his time at Macaulay Honors College at Brooklyn College doing and learning. His approach to school and life has been greatly influenced by his parents.

“My family was never rich and we never had anything handed to us. I watched my parents work crazy hours in order to provide for me and I knew I’d have to work just as hard if not harder to make my own place in the world. And that’s what I’ve been doing to get up to this point.”

Kwan majored in Multimedia Computing, which is computer science with a focus on web design, graphics, gaming and other forms of media. He says coding has changed his life and allowed him to become a great problem solver, and has influenced his life outside of computers.

 “I can approach problems logically, or abstract them into easy to understand concepts. I always find myself thinking of new ways to implement solutions to my various problems in my games. I take the concepts and theory of coding in order to manage and display my other interests, like art. I can break down my process into conceptual stages and then tackle them one at a time like I would if it were a programming problem.

Kwan has been a Peer Mentor at Brooklyn College and he had an internship at CodeToWork, a company that tries to get young, minority students their first jobs in the tech world. He’s most proud of the work he did on his project Code Control, a game he developed that teaches the basics of coding to people. He is on the Dean’s List and received an award from the National Black Science Students Organization. Kwan’s college education was an expectation in his family.

“My mother is from Barbados, and my father is from Costa Rica, and both of parents are college educated and work in the health field. I’m continuing the trend of going to college because they raised me and always pushed me to be the best I can. They let me know that life would be harder for me because I’m black, but that it shouldn’t be a reason to ever give up. They support me in more ways than I can count and are positive about me pursuing my goals.”

Kwan has a full-time position in computer programming and he expects to continue in gaming and web designing, as well as coding, which he says allows him to “create anything I wish and it allows me to have an intimate connection with what I create.”  His studies at Macaulay helped lead him there.

“I was attracted to Macaulay because of the ability to gain connections where I could help others, as well as grow in my own ways. I was also able to focus on growing as a person, both socially and academically without the burden of tuition.”

The New Design High School graduate has come a long way, but his parent have instilled in him to be the best that he can be—at whatever he does.

For Sara Louie, what happens in the classroom doesn’t just stay in the classroom. Sara developed and brought the very first Splash! event to Macaulay Honors College this past year harnessing the love of learning that’s part of Macaulay and sharing it with others. Splash! is a sixty-year old academic outreach program by universities that invites high school students to attend classes created and taught by students, alumni, and local community members. Sara rounded up 40 Macaulay students to teach 70 students from 18 different high schools the best of what they’ve learned at CUNY—from Fanfiction to Contextualizing Horror Films to an Introduction to Creative Writing.

“I didn’t know it at the time, but Splash! brought together everything I love about Macaulay and let me put the skills I’ve gained over the past four years to use. It was exciting to have so many passionate Macaulay students in one place and to see how high schoolers challenged themselves to attend specific, intensive classes. I challenged myself to design a team that reflected the best pieces of leadership I’ve learned over the past few years and used my experience in event planning.”

Even as Sara has eagerly organized events and shared her learning with others, she also has pursued her interest in saving the environment. She is majoring in Sustainability Development and studied abroad to learn more about the global approach to these issues in Costa Rica, as well as in Israel. Both countries offered a contrast in how to approach these challenges.

“I was able to contrast how a developing country in the tropics tackled sustainability issues compared to a more developed country in the Mediterranean. I loved that for each program, I really got to not only learn in the classroom, but travel into the country to see the policies and programs in practice.”

College education goes back several generations in Sara’s family, who arrived in the U.S. from China and Taiwan. One of her grandmothers went to Cornell for Biology and one of her grandfathers got his PhD from the University of Michigan in Mechanical Engineering. Both her parents graduated from Columbia University and now work in IT. Sara attended The High School for Math, Science, and Engineering at CCNY, and continued at Macaulay, also on City’s campus.

“I love New York and knew the places I was interested in interning at were here, but that said, going to college on the same campus as high school and in the same city – it was important for me to be able to travel. I also knew I enjoyed a small school community (including classes!) and a supportive environment. I liked that Macaulay provided that community, but still let me be part of the bigger CUNY system.”

Sara was a member of Macaulay’s Scholars Council and served as its president and vice president for community service. She has also been active in Circle K, a global network of community service oriented college students. While at Macaulay, Sara also served on the search committee for the new Dean. After graduation, she will be in a fellowship program at Newman’s Own Foundation in a program designed to build leaders within non-profits; the program also will provide personal mentoring and training opportunities. Sara is ready to follow wherever her passion takes her.

“I think what I’ve learned the most in college is that there are a lot of opportunities out there and it’s about finding the opportunity that works best for you at a given time.”