If you’re interested in sharing your opinion on any cultural, political or personal topic, create an  account here  and check out our  how-to post  to learn more. ____ When I look back on my roots, my career path is unconventional. My family moved to the South Bronx from Dominica, a small island nation in the Caribbean, where my mother worked as a teacher. While navigating a new life as a recent immigrant in New York City, she somehow found the time to study and earn her teaching certificate. She believed wholeheartedly in the power of education and knowledge to transform people’s lives. And she passed her passion for education onto me. As a young girl I would spend hours disassembling and reassembling any household item or contraption I could get my hands on — much to the chagrin of my siblings. I was endlessly fascinated by the precision and creativity that went into designing and constructing appliances and electronics. It surprised no one when I left the city after high school...