When the grant ran out, Nichols continued the program with corporate funding under a new Oakland-based nonprofit he founded in 2016, The Social Engineering Project. The Social Engineering Project educates and mentors about 200 underrepresented kindergarten to high school students a year in STEM. The Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement program inspired his career path. In fact, for its 10th anniversary this October, Nichols said The Social Engineering Project will honor NASA astronaut Victor Glover, the Artemis II pilot. So, for introducing students of color to STEM careers through The Social Engineering Project, this week’s CBS News Bay Area ICON Award goes to Kevin Nichols.