At just 15, Natty Gove has already done something most adults haven’t: He founded a nonprofit to get laptops into the hands of local students who need them.
The nonprofit is called the Tech4Youth Foundation, and its mission is simple—to give students reliable access to personal computers so they’re not left behind (both in the classroom and outside of it). It’s partnering with the Sausalito Marin City School District to raise $11,000 to reach that goal and allow more students equal access to necessary resources.
Tech4Youth Foundation has seen incredible success since its inception, but there is still room to donate and make a difference before the start of the next school year. Which is why Gove reached out to the local press to help spread the word in the hope that the people of Marin will see his mission through.
“I’m so lucky to have grown up here in Tiburon. But in Marin, there is a culture of significant wealth and privilege,” said Gove. “One thing that leads to is, from the outside, a stereotyping of Marin as being entirely wealthy. But if you look into it, you’ll see that there is a significant socioeconomic gap in Marin. And that part of Marin gets lost and is not talked about as much as it should be.”
“From my experience doing my schoolwork, contacting people about opportunities and doing extracurricular activities, it’s so crucial to have that reliable access to a personal computer,” he added. “Plus, we live in such a tech-driven part of the world, which further highlights why it’s so important.”
In the modern era, students don’t just use computers to research papers and take online quizzes—actually, computers are the gateway to extracurriculars, coding basics, college apps and everything in between. Those students who do not have access to personal computers can face significant obstacles to education and opportunity. To place more computers into their hands would make a huge difference in their ability to participate equally with their peers.
“I did some volunteer work at MLK Academy in Marin City,” said Gove. “It was a great experience, and while I was there, I had a great conversation with a teacher we were volunteering with. I was thinking, how can I help out more? How can I give my time to a good cause? So, I talked with the superintendent of the district and the IT department, and at the time, 30 students didn’t have their own personal computers at home to do school activities on.”
“In this much more tech-reliant world, not having a computer to learn those skills is really a wall,” he continued. “So, I thought that if I could raise money to buy these laptops, that would be great.”
With his mission clear, Gove began his quest to provide laptop equality to his fellow students. In February, he filed and officially received Tech4Youth Foundation’s nonprofit certification. And, after that, he hit the ground running … literally. But going door to door did not yield the results he needed to meet his goal. He soon realized that if he wanted to get computers into the hands of those who needed them most, he’d have to do more than speak with individual residents and send emails to local businesses. So, Gove turned to the local press instead.
“The moment when we really started to make money was after being published in the Tiburon Ark,” he said. “It got us out there and exposed our mission to the community.”
Although Gove has support from his family, school, press and community, the mission is entirely his. From start to finish, he’s walked the walk—and he filed the 501(c)(3) paperwork to prove it.
“We’re very excited about what Natty is doing, and we’re continually amazed at how much progress he’s making,” said Alex Gove, his father. “The process is a little bit more complex than I think he thought it was to put together a nonprofit. But he’s really been leading the charge, and we’re just very thrilled at how focused he is on this.
“What’s really amazing to me is that [the school administration] has really taken Natty’s mission very seriously; it’s one thing to have a 15 year old email somebody at a school district about a plan they have, but it’s another for administration to listen, consider the project seriously and provide direction,” Alex Gove continued.
Tech4Youth hasn’t quite hit its goal yet, but momentum is on Natty Gove’s side—especially if Marin keeps showing up through the summer. Every donation now means real students will start next school year with the tools they need, not the setbacks they don’t.
“One hundred percent of donations that go to us go into our goal, which is to provide computers to underprivileged children in our local communities,” said Gove. “If we exceeded that limit, that would be amazing … and would go to our next project to buy more computers for Marin’s students so nobody has to go without.”
Donations to Tech4Youth Foundation can be made through the website. If a financial gift isn’t possible, those interested may still support the cause by spreading the word, whether on social media or through word of mouth. In a place as connected as Marin, reaching the goal should be entirely possible, especially given the strong momentum Gove has already built.
“As of today, we’ve raised $8,000 out of our $11,000 goal,” he explained. “That’s one thing I love about Marin—when people see that there’s a need, they really want to step in to help out a good cause. We’ve had some people just offer us computers they have, and it’s been great seeing the community come together behind a fantastic cause.”
“It’s just wonderful to see such a large group of people across Marin come together and donate their hard-earned money to a great cause,” Gove concluded. “And the money is going right back into the community for better education and digital access for all of Marin’s students. This entire experience has just been so great, and very rewarding.”
To learn more about the Tech4Youth Foundation nonprofit or to donate to the cause and help to put computers in the hands of Marin’s students who would otherwise go without, call 415.720.8870, send an email to te******************@gm***.com, visit tech4youthfoundation.org.
