Black History Today: David Coven, the underdog who slays giants and changes the world
/Black History Today, created by Marcus Harden in celebration of Black History Month, pays tribute to the living legacy of Black history in our community and beyond and recognizes the people shaping the future.
Presented in collaboration with the South Seattle Emerald.
“If the only time you think of me as a scientist is during Black History Month, then I must not be doing my job as a scientist.”
By Marcus Harden
The kingdom of Wakanda from the “Black Panther” series introduced the world to what has been affectionately called “Afro-Tech.” The fictional realm brought to the mainstream an image of what it meant for Black people and people of the Diaspora to showcase our genius through creation, through science and through futurism.
While we may not have a real Wakanda, we do have brilliant and bold minds creating a better tomorrow through invention and science.
David Coven is one of those brilliant minds leading the world into a more innovative tomorrow. When you encounter David, you’re always met with a smile — the little brother who’s always so happy to see you — and his joy brings you joy. His mind is like a sponge, and David’s fascination with all things unique and different began as a young child and first came through in his art (word is he remains a fantastic artist as well).
David has earned such distinctions as the Gates Millennium Scholarship, and he was a research assistant at the University of Washington and an intern at Tesla (still waiting on that Model X!). Yet, David’s intellectual achievements pale next to his personal legend and heart.
David experienced great hardship while a student at Cleveland High School in Seattle, and his family struggled for a time as many families do, often leaving David without a consistent place to lay his head at night.
He never stopped attending school, and he applied himself and his heart. The kindness and the love he has always shown to everyone else was returned to him, and he found a safe space to live as well as a second family with Adam Burden and Linda Sinni, two of his teachers at Cleveland. That, coupled with the love from his traditional family, laid a foundation for the courage David continues to display in service.
David stayed the course and graduated not only from Cleveland, but later from the University of Washington as well, where he earned a B.S. in mechanical engineering.
While in college, David also co-founded his own non-profit. Scholarship Junkies is a web- and app-based portal that supports students like David and others to find money to pay for college, as he believed his good fortune should be everyone’s.
Shortly after graduating, David was faced with a dilemma: he was offered a job at Tesla — a version of the American Dream for many, especially for a young Black man who had overcome so much. Or he could continue building his non-profit in service of others.
Robert Frost once said, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”
When it came to this decision, David found himself presented with his own fork in the road. He, too, took the road less-traveled, and he bet on himself, diving full-time into his non-profit.
That choice has made all the difference in the lives of the people David’s vision has served. Scholarship Junkies has distributed more than 100 million dollars to undocumented/DREAMER students, and the organization provided more than 30 living-wage jobs to people over the last year. Like any founder, David puts in long days and nights to make it all possible.
While many would have taken the Model X, David has chosen to pursue his “why,” setting aside the promise of profit for the even greater promise that accompanies a sense of purpose. While he is still a very young man, his care for others, his dedication to service and his own personal journey — which has strengthened him and led him to new heights — are inspiring.
I believe in the power of names, and David’s name means “beloved,” or “a person who is dearly loved.” It is accurate — he is dearly loved. But instead of absorbing and keeping that love, he has made himself into a prism, magnifying and radiating brilliance in a way that brightens the world.
Those who are deeply familiar with the biblical story of “David and Goliath” will understand the phrase, “and David was a man after God’s own heart.” When it comes to David Coven, that has to be true. He is a selfless king, the underdog who slays giants and changes the world. We’re better for his joy and for his brilliance, and he is what it means to be Black History Today!
Original artwork created by Devin Chicras for the South Seattle Emerald.
