Student Spark Story

Jackie Ng

Assurance Associate
PwC
Ignited Teacher – Kenny Contreras, high school math teacher

Student Spark Story

Jackie Ng works as an Assurance Associate at PwC, auditing financial statements and reviewing Greenhouse Gas Carbon Footprints for companies. Counterintuitively, she got there by failing her advanced math classes as a sophomore in high school–and ending up in the classroom of Ignited alum Kenny Contreras, which was a pivotal moment. “Having mentors in the places where you’re seeing failure is really important, knowing you’re not alone and having someone in school who really sees you,” Jackie reflects.

Kenny has held three Ignited fellowships with Cisco Systems (2014), Lockheed Martin (2015), and Brocade Communications (2016), and served as a 2019 curriculum coach, helping teachers translate their industry experiences into lesson plans. From 2015-2019, he also taught Jackie in several math courses, including trigonometry, Calculus AB, and AP Statistics.

“My story was that I was really, really good at math growing up, and I was actually ahead in my classes,” Jackie says. “I had this image of myself, and so did my classmates who thought, ‘Oh, Jackie is this super smart girl who’s really advanced in math.’ And then all of the sudden, I was struggling. I ended up taking calculus twice. That brought a lot of self-doubt in my ability as a student. But Mr. Contreras never wanted me to feel that way about myself.”

Kenny’s classroom provided a safe place for Jackie and other students to grapple with challenging math content–a place where it was okay to be confused. The calming atmosphere he created, often with a YouTube fireplace and chill music, reflected his reassurance and belief in his students. “I can’t even begin to express how impactful this person was to me. I went to him every single day after school because I needed so much help. He would say, ‘This is fine. You got this.’ And I would think, ‘Oh, maybe I can do this.’”

Jackie went on to attend Santa Clara University, where a business ethics course opened her eyes to how she could make an impact in the corporate world. She found her path in accounting–until an advanced accounting course threw her off track. Just as with AP Calculus in high school, she gave herself permission to step back and try again. She ended up doing extremely well in both classes, which she attributes to mentors like Kenny who had faith in her.

“Because of Mr. Contreras, I gained the confidence to trust myself and embrace where I am. His ability to see potential in his students and me, even when I can’t see it myself, has made all the difference. And he showed me that setbacks are steps forward, and staying true to your values leads to success.”

Now at PwC, Jackie is involved in sustainability and financial statement audit services for large public tech companies. “The goal of my job is to make sure people trust the company; we review internal controls and documentation to give the public confidence in the financial statements they put out into the world.” Every day looks different, offering a challenging but exciting work style that keeps Jackie on her toes and practicing the lifelong learning mindset that Kenny taught her.