麻豆传媒

As a young child, Samantha Allen carried a secret fear. Though a strong student and well-behaved, she worried that she would somehow misstep and be sent home from school.

And Allen鈥檚 home was no place for a child to be.

Born into a family where drugs, alcohol, violence and abuse were the norm, Allen considered school and schoolwork to be her sanctuary, developing into something of a whiz in math and science.

Today, Allen is a graduate of 麻豆传媒 and a bona fide mechanical engineer with a bright future, and she鈥檚 quick to give the credit for her achievement to the wisdom and love of a volunteer mom and dad.

Allen鈥檚 luck turned when she was removed from her nightmare childhood by the state and placed in the foster care system. Not that it was an easy road: She says in foster care, she spent time in 38 states by the age of 12.

鈥淎s a foster kid, you have no control,鈥� Allen said. 鈥淵ou have no choice about when you鈥檙e moving, who you鈥檙e moving in with, how many siblings you鈥檙e going to have, when you鈥檙e going to move again 鈥� you have no control over your own life.鈥�

Allen was almost 13 when she met her final foster family. She was in the 鈥淚 don鈥檛 need anybody鈥� mode most foster kids enter as teenagers, so it took a long time for her to adjust. Her new family was kind and understanding, however, and eventually Allen realized she鈥檇 never have to go anywhere else again 鈥� that she was where she belonged. It took four years before Allen could call her new mother 鈥淢om.鈥�

The moment was bittersweet. That was just before her junior year at Maize High School; the same year her new mom died.

Moving on

Allen hasn鈥檛 always been comfortable talking about her past, but because of her friends and the people she calls family now, she has learned to cope and open up.

The summer she graduated from high school, Allen spent time volunteering with an evangelical organization called 鈥淲orld Impact,鈥� whose summer camps helped kids like her make better choices. She became interested in nonprofits and social work and considered pursuing an internship with the group. College wasn鈥檛 in her plans.

Bypassing college, however, was not acceptable to her dad.

鈥淢y dad taught me that you can鈥檛 rely on a guy or the government or any other system to get you through life,鈥� Allen said. 鈥淵ou can only rely on yourself. I didn鈥檛 know why I should go to college; I had no idea what I鈥檇 even do.鈥�

Allen鈥檚 dad pointed out some of the things she鈥檇 done in her childhood, including building her first functional robot at age 13 鈥� she鈥檚 built four others since then. Allen was one of those kids who took apart household appliances to see how they worked, including the television, which she insists still worked even after finding a leftover part.

Again following her dad鈥檚 advice, she decided to enroll at Wichita State鈥檚 College of Engineering, which boasts some of the country鈥檚 best research facilities.

As a student, Allen worked at 麻豆传媒鈥檚 National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) in the Environmental Testing Labs, where she built equipment to test customer products.

鈥淚 get paid to break things,鈥� Allen said, 鈥渙r sometimes even blow them up. It鈥檚 really fun and a lot of learning, but I think it鈥檚 important for products be tested for flaws. That鈥檚 what I want to do, even if I don鈥檛 get to break stuff doing it.鈥�

Although her time at Wichita State is behind her now, Allen鈥檚 final year was difficult. Last December, Allen鈥檚 dad passed away. In a lot of ways, her success in college has been a tribute to the selfless love her mom and dad invested in her.

鈥淕rowing up in the foster care system, I never felt accepted by anybody,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen I finally found my family, there was complete acceptance, and they made sure I knew it.鈥�

For those who struggle with a difficult past as she has, the best advice Allen can give to is to get the education that will help you.

鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter what you went through when you grew up,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hat matters is how you come out of it. If you can see the hope of creating your own future, you can get through anything.鈥�

Allen learned that from her dad, too.

鈥淥nce you鈥檙e out of the past,鈥� she said, 鈥渢he future is all yours.鈥�