3 ms·

I went to the same high school as Sergey Brin, a little over a decade after he had and well after Google had become the de facto search standard. Didn't know un

by bsanr2 6y ago

I went to the same high school as Sergey Brin, a little over a decade after he had and well after Google had become the de facto search standard. Didn't know until I was already in college. AFAIK he's never made an effort to reach out to them, grant resources, give a talk, anything. It's a majority-minority public school in a solidly middle class (like, actually middle class) suburb, so it's not like they're flush with funding. Whatever his relationship to it had been at the time, you'd think he'd find it within himself to give back a tiny bit from the exceptional fortune and life that he's built. The reality, though, was that a lot of us didn't even know who he was, even though all of the school computers had their homepages set to Google.com. I think that's emblematic of Google's regard to reinvestment. Even the products which made them so powerful in the first place they regularly abandon.

znpy 6y ago
Well he might just not have fond memories of that school.
- MrZongle2 6y ago
  That's entirely possible. But one could argue that would be even more reason for him to step in and try and make it better.
  - Nasrudith 6y ago
    It could easily be throwing good money after bad - and he has moved on from it. It would be like giving money to an impoverished country with a blatantly corrupt government - it wouldn't do any good if they just waste it on say landscaping instead of say doing anything about bullying. On that note do you feel an obligation to donate even say $5 to your old high school decades later when you have no other connections to it like kids currently attending? I don't think that is a very common behavior or sentiment.
    - bsanr2 6y ago
      You should do your research. ERHS is highly-ranked, especially so for a public school that is not a full magnet (it has a magnet STEM program that makes up a portion of the student body but otherwise draws from the surrounding neighborhoods). It's quite strong academically, and several of its alumni have returned to give back to it. And, generally-speaking, it's customary for highly-successful Americans (and especially those that become public figures) to give back to their high school and college alma mater. It's a little disheartening that the immediate assumption is that "he might not have fond memories" or that "it could be throwing good money after bad." I assume that this is because the school was described as "majority-minority." ERHS students have their pick of desirable internships with the likes of NASA and the USDA, and regularly sends alumnae to Ivies and the Intel ISEF. It's not exactly an intellectually-stifling environment. We can't know what's going through Brin's mind, especially as he's never publicly discussed the subject, but we can certainly look at how his behavior compares to others, and I think HN's disregard for that in favor of a kneejerk negative reaction is shameful (if not unexpected).
robk 6y ago
He hasn't done crap for college park either. Even the oculus founder has donated tons vs him
- bsanr2 6y ago
  It's troubling. I could understand if he was just a modestly-wealthy ecec in some large corporation, or a founder of a small software company, but he's not. He's one of the richest men in the world, and for two decades was in direct control of one of the most powerful entities on the planet. If at the apex of such success you can't even throw a few laptops at the public services where you spent your formative years (if not for support, then for reform), then it really calls into question the societal utility of such enormous private influence and holdings. It's funny how these small anecdotes about Google's founder and their ramifications dovetail with the overarching circumstance, which is that Google has abused its position and should probably be broken up.

by bsanr2 6y ago

znpy 6y ago

Well he might just not have fond memories of that school.

MrZongle2 6y ago
That's entirely possible. But one could argue that would be even more reason for him to step in and try and make it better.
- Nasrudith 6y ago
  It could easily be throwing good money after bad - and he has moved on from it. It would be like giving money to an impoverished country with a blatantly corrupt government - it wouldn't do any good if they just waste it on say landscaping instead of say doing anything about bullying. On that note do you feel an obligation to donate even say $5 to your old high school decades later when you have no other connections to it like kids currently attending? I don't think that is a very common behavior or sentiment.
  - bsanr2 6y ago
    You should do your research. ERHS is highly-ranked, especially so for a public school that is not a full magnet (it has a magnet STEM program that makes up a portion of the student body but otherwise draws from the surrounding neighborhoods). It's quite strong academically, and several of its alumni have returned to give back to it. And, generally-speaking, it's customary for highly-successful Americans (and especially those that become public figures) to give back to their high school and college alma mater. It's a little disheartening that the immediate assumption is that "he might not have fond memories" or that "it could be throwing good money after bad." I assume that this is because the school was described as "majority-minority." ERHS students have their pick of desirable internships with the likes of NASA and the USDA, and regularly sends alumnae to Ivies and the Intel ISEF. It's not exactly an intellectually-stifling environment. We can't know what's going through Brin's mind, especially as he's never publicly discussed the subject, but we can certainly look at how his behavior compares to others, and I think HN's disregard for that in favor of a kneejerk negative reaction is shameful (if not unexpected).

robk 6y ago

He hasn't done crap for college park either. Even the oculus founder has donated tons vs him

bsanr2 6y ago
It's troubling. I could understand if he was just a modestly-wealthy ecec in some large corporation, or a founder of a small software company, but he's not. He's one of the richest men in the world, and for two decades was in direct control of one of the most powerful entities on the planet. If at the apex of such success you can't even throw a few laptops at the public services where you spent your formative years (if not for support, then for reform), then it really calls into question the societal utility of such enormous private influence and holdings. It's funny how these small anecdotes about Google's founder and their ramifications dovetail with the overarching circumstance, which is that Google has abused its position and should probably be broken up.