In May 2015, Handa Chun approached the three other members of the board of directors (Dhivyan Karunakaran, Robert Jett, and Hanseung Chun) to propose his idea of creating nonprofit organization that would bring technology and STEM education to people who would not otherwise receive it. Soon afterwards, the board of directors structured the organization and developed a plan for TeCanal’s growth. re
ceived 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service and became eligible to receive tax-deductible donations. TeCanal’s first STEM outreach program began at the Mattie B. Uzzle Outreach Center in Baltimore, MD in October 2015. In May 2016, TeCanal’s second STEM outreach program began at the Immigrant Outreach Service Center in Baltimore. Its third outreach program, which focuses on STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts Mathematics) education, began in July 2017 as a partnership between TeCanal and Creative Alliance. Today, TeCanal consists of over 60 volunteers led by its board of directors, board of advisers, and executive officers.
