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The junior now helps other families feel the same way with the help of his mom and siblings through Tech 101 Kids.
The program introduces local children to science, technology and educational devices to inspire them and "promote an engineering mindset."
"He definitely opened the door for other kids," Erick's mom Hazel Pinos said.
Erick Pinos was the first student from Hawthorne to be accepted to MIT, his mother said. He studies computer science though he isn't sure what he wants to do after graduation. He wants to open his own business some day and always liked artificial intelligence, Hazel Pinos said.
Erick Pinos attended Passaic County Tech before MIT.
"He was always a good student," Hazel Pinos said. "Since he was very young he was in Gifted and Talented programs."
The Pinos family originally came from Ecuador and Costa Rica, and Hazel said she and her husband never heard of MIT before Erick's junior year of high school.
When back in Hawthorne Erick shows younger students toys, robots, inventions, homemade creations, computer programs, and more at schools and community events for Tech 101.
His younger brothers Brian, Brandon and Joseph help out as well to run the program.
"We have the whole family," Hazel Pinos said.
MORE INFO: Visit Tech 101 on Facebook.
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