Mentor Monday: Meet Amy

Amy Czuchlewski is a member of the Bold Idea Board of Directors and also serves as a mentor for our CS First program. Skilled in mobile technologies and building effective engineering teams, Amy is the VP of Engineering at Bottle Rocket.

Bringing her passion for equitable access to computer science education, especially among girls, she is a strong asset to the Bold Idea team.

Meet Amy...

What is something many people don't know about you?
I come from a family of computer wizards.  My dad was a systems administrator (cool story - back in the 50's he was working in yards & grounds at Kellogg's and they were looking for young guys to learn about computers so with no college degree he worked in IT at Kellogg's for 43 years!), my sister taught high school computer science, my brother was a database administrator, and my mom was an administrative assistant and we all know that they are the ones who really know how all the computers really work in an office.

How did you become interested in technology and programming?
My dad had a computer in our basement, and I used to spend time down there teaching myself to program it using BASIC.  I didn't realize that what I was doing was actually "programming", I was just making graphics and setting them to music.  Eventually I took an aptitude test in high school that said computer programmer would be a good career for me, and the pieces just fell into place.

What did you study in college?
I have a bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Michigan.

What are you working on now?
I am the VP of Engineering at Bottle Rocket, a mobile/connected device specialist that defines, designs, and develops applications that connect future-focused brands to their customers.  Our more than 350 iOS, Android, wearable, AR/VR, voice, web, and TV experiences have set new standards in connecting people to what they want and are redefining how they live their lives.  To learn more, visit us at bottlerocketstudios.com.  I'm incredibly lucky that I get to do what I love, every day!

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
I love spending those two hours every week with my daughter, sharing something I love with her and getting her excited about coding.  One of the coolest things that's happened for me while mentoring is that we have this one student in the CS First program, a girl, who is by far the most talented coder in the group and everyone knows it.  The rest of the children (even the boys) go to her for help and I think that is just amazing to watch.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Coding is just like solving puzzles - it's fun!

What is it about Bold Idea's mission that really connects with you?
I read that 99% of parents want their children to learn computer science but only 40% of schools in Dallas actually offer it in the curriculum.  I think its great that Bold Idea is working with schools, community centers and local area tech companies to expand the reach and make computer science education accessible to more of our students here in the Dallas area.  Not only is it helping build future technologists in our students, but it is creating a community among the mentors as well!

Mentor Monday: Meet Todd

Meet Bold Idea volunteer Todd James: a Bank of America business analyst on weekdays and a mentor for our east Dallas middle school coding team on Saturdays. 

Todd is passionate about increasing the diversity found on most IT development teams and enjoys supporting the diverse student teams at Bold Idea — "Anyone can code and everyone should have a chance to learn these skills which have real world applications."

Meet Todd...

What is something many people don’t know about you?
I was a foreign exchange student to Brazil in High School.  It was an amazing experience and has fueled my passion for travel as an adult.

How did you become interested in technology and programming?
I’ve always had a natural curiosity in technology.  As a kid, I used to take apart my electronic toys when I got bored with them.  When I was in 5th grade I burnt out an old hand me down computer by forcing an even older Atari game cartridge into the expansion slot, needless to say my parents weren't too happy.  I took a deeper interest in programming when I began a job performing application support at a telecom which paired me with development teams to troubleshoot and resolve a number of problems.  The satisfaction of resolving these issues has been a motivating force.

What did you study in college?
I got my Bachelor of Science in Aviation Technology in college.

What are you working on now?
My latest position is as a Business Analyst with Bank of America.

What have you gained from being a mentor?  What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
For me, mentoring has been a chance to shake things up a bit and give back to my community. It’s rewarding to watch students successfully tackle problems with the tools and advice we’ve taught them.  My favorite part of the program is watching students perform their demos at the end of the semester.

Is there anything you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I would have changed my major in college.

What is it about Bold Idea’s mission that really connects with you?
I love the diversity in these Bold Idea classes and they do not match the typical IT development departments I’ve worked in.  Anyone can code and everyone should have a chance to learn these skills which have real world applications.

Mentor Monday: Meet Sukhmani

Sukhmani Sandhu has mentored Bold Idea students as young as 6 and as old at 14. The UT Dallas senior discovered coding in college and is passionate about encouraging young students to give it a try.  

Meet Sukhmani...

What is something many people don't know about you?
I love to draw and paint. Many people are surprised that I am interested in math and science as well as more artistic subjects. I believe that it is important for the students to know that art and math (or science) are not mutually exclusive, but actually interact in very interesting ways.

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
I was always interested in building things and taking things apart. I would always ask for Legos and other building toys for my birthdays. I joined the robotics club in middle school and was able to learn more about technology and engineering. As I got older, I was able to combine this with my interest in medicine, through biomedical engineering.

What are you studying in college?
I am a senior (woot woot!) at UT Dallas, studying Biomedical Engineering.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
While mentoring, I have realized that I really enjoy teaching. I am now open to career paths that I had previously not considered.

My most memorable moment while mentoring happened a few semesters ago, when a student came in on the first day, acting as if she was quite uninterested in coding. The other mentors and I had to persuade her to participate in first activity of the session. But at the end of the day this same student seemed genuinely sad that the session was over and was eager to continue her project. Being a part of this development on the very first day, and throughout the rest of the semester, was incredibly fulfilling and memorable.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I wasn't exposed to coding until I started college. Based on how much I loved it as soon as I started, I would tell my younger self to try it out, even if none of my friends are doing it.

What is it about Bold Idea's mission that really connects with you?
All students should have access to resources and skills that help them develop the ideas and create the projects that they are interested in. They should not have to limit their creativity because of a lack of knowledge of their own potential. Through the programs at Bold Idea, more students are exposed  to new technical and professional skills that will help them in future endeavors. 

Mentor Monday: Meet Joey

In our opinion and the opinion of his 3rd–5th grade team, Joey Glover is a great mentor. "I like Joey, because he is funny!" 8-year old Alai'a told us. A skilled teacher, Joey has a unique ability to explain the most challenging computer science concepts to any age. For the past year, he has worked with our CS First elementary-age team meeting at UT Dallas' ATEC building and has succeeded in making coding approachable for his students. 

"He pushes them to make sure they understand the concepts presented in the CS First videos, and to go further, if they want," said his fellow mentor Stella Lin.

Meet Joey...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
I feel like I have always been interested in technology and programming, but I think one of my greatest inspirations was playing the old game Roller Coaster Tycoon. It was just so magical to build cool rides and incredible to see all the people interacting together in the park, and it was all done through a really clever program, so it got me very interested.

What did you study in college?
Electrical Engineering

What are you working on now?
I work as a software engineer at Raytheon in the Identity Services department.  I am currently working on updating our development processes to the 21st century and coding various back end services to help other internal businesses interact with LDAP.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
I really love to teach, so I've gained a place to be able to teach others, and to teach something I am passionate about.  My most memorable moment was when we were creating a platforming game and one of the students was spamming the screen with one of the sprites.  It was pretty hilarious, but kinda you had to be there. 

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?  
Don't be content with speculating about something that could easily be researched.  In relation to coding, this means if some piece of software does something interesting, don't just speculate about how it might be done in code, but instead look and search and read about how it was done. 

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?  
The thing that connects with me the most is the idea that all students deserve the opportunity to learn computer science.  I believe the more freely we exchange ideas and information the more quickly society will get better.  We are not the owners of any information, and the more we spread the information the more refined it will become over time.

Mentor Monday: Meet Quang

Quang Tran is a lead software engineer at Flywheel Building Intelligence in Dallas. During the spring semester, he volunteered as a mentor with 3rd–5th grade students at the Wesley-Rankin Community Center.

Meet Quang...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
I started learning programming back in my high school in Vietnam. I didn’t really like programming back then because students mainly studied to compete. We had to remember boring algorithms and always programmed in Pascal. Fast forward to college, I decided to give programming another chance and it worked out beautifully. I enjoyed creating programs that actually help people. Understanding the magic that makes the computer work and overcoming programming challenges were also fun.

What did you study in college?
I earned my bachelor degree in Computer Science from UT Dallas. I majored in Biochemistry but after the first semester, it was clear that I am not interested in theoretical work. I wanted a career track with more hands-on experience and quicker iteration cycle. That’s why I switched to Computer Science (partly because of my high school background) and stick with it ever since.

What are you working on now?
I am a software engineer for Flywheel Building Intelligence Inc. We are building a cloud-based platform that offers real-time people, energy, and building management service.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
Being a mentor confirms my interest in teaching, especially teaching programming to kids. Funny enough, my most memorable moment doesn’t come while mentoring. It was when Robyn and Ben brought in the programmable robots. The kids were so excited and immediately started to play with the robots on their own. That’s when I understand how important it is to gamify and brainstorm interesting activities in order to attract the kids.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Being able to code something does not mean you should do it. You should always think about the big picture and align your work with the ultimate goal of the project. Your work must bring value to the product and your team.

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I always believe children are the future. Vietnam is a developing country. In order to reach its full potential, education and children must be the #1 investment. Bold Idea’s focus on developing and empowering young minds, especially through computer science - something related to my background, really resonates with my belief and personal interest.

Mentor Monday: Meet Stella

Editor's note: Stella Lin volunteers with Bold Idea's youngest students in our CS First program, which uses Google curriculum and the MIT Scratch platform. When she's not mentoring Bold Idea students, Stella is a program and project manager at Sprint. Read her journey below from the daughter of programmers to building macros in Excel and now Bold Idea.

Meet Stella...

By Stella Lin

Both of my parents were programmers. I remember playing with "punch cards" at my mom's office when I was growing up. She later tried to interest me in books on object-oriented programming in C, but I studied Economics in college. I didn't get the programming "bug" myself until I started working as a Financial Analyst and started to write my own "macros" to automate my reporting.

I decided to go back to school full-time to pursue a M.S. in M.I.S., but I found a job soon after through a consulting firm who offered to train me in the mainframe programming languages (like the ones my parents had worked with) that were in demand again during Y2K.  

I joined Sprint as a full-time employee after my contract ended, and was excited to use new middleware, which I later helped to rewrite in JAVA, to open up some of our mainframe programs to be accessed over the internet in my first development project after Y2K.

Fast forward a few years later, when my "Enterprise Web Solutions" team at Sprint was outsourced to IBM.  Instead of applying to be "rebadged" to IBM, I chose to stay at Sprint to work with my former "customers" on the business side and as an SME resource for the new IBM team.  

In many ways, I feel that this experience helped prepare me to be a CS First mentor because Google's curriculum has given the kids all the tools they need to complete the programs on their own, but they may sometimes need an "SME" to help point them in the right direction.

I really love seeing the kids' satisfaction when they are able to complete and run their programs in Scratch.  It reminds me of my first experiences building "macros" in Excel and Access, as opposed to reading about object-oriented programming concepts.

Mentor Monday: Meet Brian

Brian Nguyen is a senior at Plano East Senior High School and is already making plans to study computer science and statistics in college. 

Each week Brian mentors ideaSpark students meeting at the Frisco Athletic Center, and we're lucky to have him on the team.

Meet Brian...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
I became interested in technology and programming when my father bought me a computer for my birthday. Through tinkering with my computer and sometimes breaking my computer, I became interested in the information technology space and have continued to follow innovations in computer hardware. My first programming experience was during my sophomore year when my Scientific Research and Design teacher wanted us to complete a Javascript sequence on Khan Academy for more classroom funds. I was amazed in how simple line of code in an online code editor can animate a picture or create games with complex interactions. 

What are you working on now?
Currently, I am a researcher at the University of Texas at Dallas under the mentorship of Dr. Richard Golden. I am currently working on a system to reduce breast cancer misdiagnosis rates through machine learning algorithms. Hopefully, in the summer, I can publish my findings in a scientific journal. 

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
As a mentor, I was able to learn new programming languages such as HTML and CSS alongside the children. Mentoring taught me to appreciate my computer science teachers, as teaching computer science concepts to young children is difficult, and I have never realized the difficulty before joining Bold Idea. My most memorable moment was when the children, during break time, played with their food with each other. As the children were playing with their food, I was reminded of my myself when I was young, and it taught me to embrace my inner child.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I should’ve learned coding when I was younger. I had thought that coding was only for really smart people. There are plenty of communities and organizations dedicated to teaching children coding. If I was able to change my past, I would participate in programs like Bold Idea.  

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
The universal aspect of the mission resonates with me because I believe that everyone should take a computer science course. Furthermore, the collaborative aspect of the mission appeals to me because my best and most fun work was with other people. Collaboration is a mainstay of human innovation, and we should foster a collaborative environment to improve our world.   

Mentor Monday: Meet Matt

Matt Dorsey mentors ideaSpark students this semester at our UT Dallas location. Just like the Jr. High students in our program, he started learning web development in his early teen years, so he's able to relate to their curiosity and motivation. Working from the AT&T Foundry in Plano, Matt is an applications developer for AT&T Partner Solutions.

Meet Matt...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
When I was 13 my Dad brought home a copy of Front Page (WYSIWYG editor), which I used to make several websites. After a short while, I began looking through my websites’ source code which eventually got me writing raw HTML, CSS, and Javascript. I’d show my websites to my friends and word got around to my neighbors and business owners in the community who then hired me to build their websites. So it was a combination of curiosity and financial pull.

What did you study in college?
I earned my undergraduate degree in economics from UNT and a master’s degree in technology commercialization from UT Austin.  My part-time job as developer in college turned into a full-time job after graduation.

What are you working on now?
I work for AT&T Partner Solutions on the tools and technology team where I develop applications to assist collaborative efforts between our agents, solution providers and wholesale customers.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
I discovered that I really enjoy teaching. My most memorable moment as a mentor (so far) was seeing one of the kids begin googling for developer knowledge that we hadn’t yet gone over as a class. He was really motivated.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I think it’s really important to work on a development team with experienced, senior level coders, the first couple of years into a programming career.  There are a lot of silo developer jobs out there that can make it difficult to become a better programmer because there’s no one around to critique your code or push you onto better technologies.  

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I really like Bold Idea’s emphasis on teamwork and collaboration.  The kids are able to create better quality projects faster and become better coders through these collaborative team efforts.

Mentor Monday: Meet Jay

A long-time Bold Idea supporter, Jarriel Henderson joined our mentoring team this semester and works with Jr. High students at our Bottle Rocket site. Jarriel (Jay to the students) brings a passion for technology development to his role and is constantly pursuing his own DIY projects. We are very lucky he is now part of the Bold Idea family!

Meet Jay...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
My school installed computers when I was in the 1st grade and I really enjoyed our lab time. As I got older, most of my time was spent at the library studying and learning about computers. I would often focus on learning what career would be smart to invest in; everything pointed to computers and technology. I love the barrier to entry with technology - doesn’t matter your background, all you need is patience and determination to succeed.

What did you study in college?
I studied Architecture and Civil Engineering at first, and then decided to pursue Interactive Media.

What are you working on now?
I work with Roger Wilco, a digital marketing agency focused on film production and live broadcasting.
    
I am working on a smart city tourism app.  After working in video and interactive media for a number of years, I’d like to create a connected TV app that helps urban communities explore their world through engaging stories and events tailored to their interests.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring.
The one thing that I have gained from being a mentor is the joy of building relationships with the kids. I think that their curiosity along with creativity is contagious, and I always let them know that within this realm determination and patience is key. My most fond memory is working with students on their creative projects and sharing with them the art of problem solving and creativity. I think their curiosity is what fuels my own passion to teach.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I would tell my younger self to invest more time into DIY/Maker initiatives and get hands on with electronics. Taking things apart to see how they functioned, as well as finding a solid mentor within the Technical field.

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I love connecting with our future leaders of tomorrow. I had excellent teachers in my life who helped shaped my outlook on life. Bold Idea is helping craft and prepare our children for a digital and innovative world! I am just fortunate and happy to take part in this great initiative.

Mentor Monday: Meet Avinash

Often Bold Idea's youngest mentors can be the most effective at inspiring and relating to our student teams. Avinash Damania, along with his friends and classmates at Plano Senior High School, Brian, Karthik and Rishabh, are already accomplished coders and technology innovators at their young age. Seriously - it's impressive! 

We are so lucky to have them work alongside our younger students each week. Avinash is a huge inspiration to them in determination, curiosity and passion. We also can't wait to see where his path takes him next.

Meet Avinash...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
I first coded robots in 5th grade PACE using the Lego Mindstorms series, and the competition we attended that year sparked my interest. Since then, I have learned Arduino and designed numerous machines and robots with that language.

Last summer, I interned in the Machine Programming and Electrical Assembly Department at Regal Research and Manufacturing, as part of the Plano Mayor's Summer Internship Program. We use the Mastercam CAD software to design and program G-code for the parts that will be fabricated by the machines.

This year, I learned how to program for the Raspberry Pi, enduring nonstop dad jokes from my father about it being an actual "raspberry pie" and that I should avoid eating it. Haha, thanks dad, very funny! Using the Raspberry Pi, I created a robot that utilizes self-camouflage, based on the technological principles of the Tower Infinity in South Korea. The robot learns to recognize and adapt to different terrains and lighting conditions over time by using machine learning algorithms.

What will you study college?
I’m a senior at Plano East in the IB Program, but I intend on majoring in Computer Science. I’m very lucky to have to choose between UT Austin, UC Berkeley, and Cornell University.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently doing research under Dr. Vincent Ng at UT Dallas in the areas of machine learning and computational linguistics. I won’t claim to understand anywhere near all of the stuff he works on, since most of it is extremely complex. However, I’ve been able to learn about neural networks and how they are used in Dr. Ng’s project on automated analysis of argument strength of student essays. (I hope he’s not evaluating this!)

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
As a mentor, I’ve probably learned as much from them as they have from me and the rest of our fantastic mentor group. Not only do I get to revisit the basics of a variety of languages and technology, but the students question everything in a way that has made me change my own approach to learning.

What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
My most memorable moment this year illustrated that idea. Another mentor (Brian) and I were working with some of our students (Jack and Adam) on an ice cream shop website, and the code just wasn’t working. Eventually, Jack figured out what the error was, and I put my head down groaning while the kids laughed. I realized a student found an error that the mentor missed. It just serves to show that as a mentor, I have as much to learn from them as they do from us. That moment also epitomizes the collaborative nature of our Bold Idea programs as a whole.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I wish I could have told myself to start using the rubber duck method much earlier; it really does work wonders for me. If I can’t figure out what’s wrong with my program, I’ll pick up my rubber duck and walk it through my code, telling it out loud what each line is doing. Usually along the way I will realize my mistake and fix it right then and there. While I did play with rubber ducks in bubble baths as a kid, it could have doubled as my coding buddy, helping me catch my errors.

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I love how the mission statement includes the phrase "as a team." It suggests that no matter your age or skill, everyone contributes to the team effort, and the experience benefits everyone involved. The children certainly get to learn more about coding and feed their growing curiosities, but mentors and facilitators and the adults making this a reality all benefit as well.

A team endeavors together and reaps the rewards together, and I think that feeling of inclusion and achievement is paramount in someone's childhood. I’m honored and delighted to help spark the next generation of young minds who will further technology, while still working to do so myself. I know I was once in their shoes; I want to make sure I can show my gratitude to everyone who helped me learn how to code (my parents, friends, and teachers) by giving back and helping the students.

Mentor Monday: Meet Jane

What can we say about Jane Santa Cruz that will truly convey how much she's made an impact on Bold Idea? 

Though not a coder herself, Jane has contributed invaluable experience from her time with youth development programs. Much of our program content that focuses on building students' collaboration skills has come from Jane, including teambuilding activities. Her insight in the Question Formulation Technique has strengthened their critical thinking skill development and inspired their creative project planning. 

Whether it's mentoring at our Bottle Rocket site, training mentors or contributing to program design, we are truly grateful to have Jane on the Bold Idea team. Meet Jane...

How did you become interested in tech or programming?
I served with an AmeriCorps program called City Year as a full-time tutor and mentor with middle school students.  Our students needed extra support in reading and math but they likewise needed more opportunities to expand their knowledge base, including understanding more about technology.  

Because technology is such a fundamental part of our personal and professional lives now, our students should not only feel comfortable using it but likewise have a familiarly of how code is written, how apps are developed, and how to navigate different types of technology.  In this way, providing learning opportunities around coding and computer science are meaningful ways to close the achievement gap and ensure that students are building useful skills, learning how to collaborate effectively with others, and becoming more confident in themselves.

What did you study in college?
I majored in History and Spanish at Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
It’s always fun to see students grow over the course of a semester and become more confident in themselves and their coding skills.  It’s important for students to expand their problem-solving abilities while staying motivated and driven to address new challenges.  I appreciate how resilient our kids are and that they’re willing to explore, try things out, and even fail sometimes (which is good!).

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Don’t be afraid to try new things!  Coding can be intimidating- you must learn a new language, new skills, and be willing to fail along the way.  It’s always ok ask questions and get help when you need it.  I still have a lot to learn about coding and app development but it’s been a fun process so far and I’m excited to continue learning. 

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I think that the teamwork aspect of Bold Idea’s mission resonates most closely with me.  I grew up playing lots of team sports in high school but teamwork extends far beyond just sports. Understanding how to work well with others, building positive relationships, learning how to ask for help, and appreciating the diversity of the people you’re working with are all crucial skills for living a happy, healthy, and fulfilling life.  

Mentor Monday: Meet Ruben

Start-up founder Ruben Izmailyan knows the power of technology to solve problems. His app, Budgit,  helps people make better spending decisions and save for what they care about.

For two semesters, Ruben has mentored with our CS First program at Rosemont Elementary in Dallas.

Meet Ruben...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
I have been playing with computers and technology since I was about nine, but didn’t take my first programming class until high school. While I enjoyed the problem-solving aspect of coding, at the time I did not see myself pursuing a career in technology and switched to a humanities track when I went to college.

What did you study in college?
In college I majored in International Relations and Slavic Studies.  

What are you working on now?
I am working on a personal finance start-up.  After about seven years working for financial data companies serving businesses, I decided to start my own – one focused on helping people make better spending decisions and save for what they care about.  

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
Mentoring has been a great way to remember that at the end of the day, coding is solving puzzles – and that everyone can get better at it, especially if they’re having fun.  My most memorable moment mentoring was when a couple of my students first realized that changing a few characters of code made their website dramatically change colors.  They were amazed by that they could do something so visually impactful with a single keystroke.  I think they spent then next five minutes playing with color.  

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Though I do not regret pursuing a humanities track in college, I often think about how much better of a developer I’d be if I had stuck with it, even as a hobby.  Fortunately, it’s never too late for anyone to get into (or return to) coding.  

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
The best part of Bold Idea is that it gets people to leave their work bubbles and share their knowledge and, more importantly, enthusiasm for technology with young coders.  There’s something quite magical about seeing kids change their perceptions of computers from entertainment devices to creation machines.

Mentor Monday: Meet Maddy

For a second semester, Maddy Butzbach is mentoring our ideaSpark team at the UT Dallas Arts & Technology building. 

A recent Cornell grad, Maddy is originally from California and is currently a Technical Account Manager at Microsoft.

Meet Maddy...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
My first exposure to programming was through a required class for all engineering students my freshman year at Cornell. I decided on my college major after discovering how much I enjoyed it and have been passionate about technology ever since.

What did you study in college?
I got my Bachelors in Information Science, Systems, and Technology, and my Masters in Technology Management.

What are you working on now?
I'm a Technical Account Manager at Microsoft.

What have you gained from being a mentor? 
Mentoring has allowed me to improve my teaching skills and has given me great experience working with kids. I have also gained great respect for the students and am constantly impressed by how quickly they pick things up and how creative they are.

What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
Every day mentoring has brought countless fun and hilarious moments, but the most memorable was when I was most proud of the kids. Usually it's difficult to keep them focused through the entire session, but when we started their first web development project, they became entirely engrossed in working on it, to the point where they asked for more working time and less time for breaks and games. They came up with so many ideas outside the "curriculum" and would work on their projects at home, talk to their parents about their work, and come back excited to teach others what they had learned on their own. I was so inspired by their excitement, and I can tell that all of them are going to go on to do incredible things. 

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I think everyone wishes that they had started coding earlier! I would have loved to have been involved in a program like Bold Idea at a young age. 

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I find the mission statement very powerful. Empowering others to execute bold ideas is admirable in itself, and something that I hope to do throughout my own career. The fact that Bold Idea is centered around kids and fostering a passion around technology so early makes me inspired for the future and excited to see what today's young kids grow up to accomplish.
 

Mentor Profile: Meet Lucinda

Lucinda Krahl joined our mentoring team last fall and now supports ideaSpark students at The MIX. 

As a software consultant at Pariveda Solutions, Lucinda solves cool problems every day and codes full stack - a passion she brings to her team of 11-14 year olds each week.

Meet Lucinda...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
I got interested in programming in high school when I took AP Computer Science. I had always liked math and puzzles, and I was told that programming was a creative combination of those two things. I’ve been hooked ever since.

What did you study in college?
I studied Computer Science and Theology at the University of Notre Dame. 

What are you working on now?
I am now a software consultant for Pariveda Solutions. I’m helping my client improve an internal transportation application, so I get to solve some pretty cool problems, and I get to code full stack (database, code, and UI)!

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
Through being a mentor, I have gained confidence in my own teaching skills, appreciation for teachers (wow they have a tough job), and a better understanding of the intellectual potential of young kids. They’re really smart! You just have to help them show that. My most memorable moment was probably when one student, who kept complaining about how boring a project was, started exploring with colors in CSS. And then the student said, “Hmm. This isn’t as boring as I thought.” That student will remember that feeling.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I wish I could tell my younger self that just because you’ve never seen a girl programmer on TV, doesn’t mean you can’t be a girl programmer.

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I really connect with Bold Idea’s emphasis on teamwork. There aren’t enough tech team projects at the elementary level, and I can tell that the students really grow in both soft and hard skills by solving problems as a team.

Mentor Profile: Meet Farida

Farida Bharmal mentors with the ideaSpark team at The MIX in east Dallas. 

She's also an Azure Technology Lead at Microsoft, where she ensures that Microsoft Azure products are easy for customers to use and troubleshoot when things go wrong. 

Meet Farida...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
When I was growing up, computers were very new and expensive. I did not have a computer at home. But was always curious about it. The only way to get access to it was to enroll in engineering.

What did you study in college?
I received Bachelor's and Master's degress in computer science.

What are you working on now?
I am working on Microsoft cloud computing - Azure.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
I gain satisfaction teaching these young kids practical programming. This skillset will last with them forever and can provide them a means of earning a living. One memory I have: When a kid understood a concept so well and challenged me on the output of a certain computer program. It felt like my job was done.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Computer programming needs a lot of patience to learn. I remember being in front of my computer night after night trying to create a small program. The satisfaction was immense when we got our software to run and do what we wanted. The hard work has paid off and I make a good living.

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I have seen in India that every corner of every street has a cheap computer training class. America is now my home. Being in this country for 18 years, I feel this country does not have that type of infrastructure to train young minds at a cheap cost. This is exactly what Bold Idea is doing. It's a noble cause. One cannot expect that every kid can pay to do a bachelor's or Master's in computer science. But one should expect that every kid will know the basics of computer programming and that is what Bold Idea is doing.

Mentor Profile: Meet Sara

We met Sara last October when Bold Idea and Women Who Compute of UT Dallas collaborated on a computer science workshop for girls. Now, we're happy to have Sara on our mentoring team, working with 11–14 year olds at our UT Dallas Arts & Technology location.

Sara is great at bringing in her front-end development experience to support her student team's website projects.

Meet Sara...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
When I was ten, Neopets was really big among my age group. I learned a little HTML and basic photo editing skills using a program called Corel Paintshop Pro so that I could personalize my Neopets page! The interest stuck with me. I took a Multimedia class in high school, then during my first semester in college I added a computer science major to my degree plan.

What did you study in college?
In May I will be graduating with a BA in Arts and Technology and a BS in Computer Science from The University of Texas at Dallas.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on the front end of two projects using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript/TypeScript. One project is accounting software with Trintech, where I am interning, and the other is related to jury duty and is for my senior capstone project with Tyler Technologies. I am also learning more about Android App Development.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
I really enjoy working with the students and getting to see them having fun learning the languages that I write in every day! In particular, I loved the opportunity to work one-on-one with a student who missed the previous week and wanted to catch up with the lesson plan.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
My intermediate schools did not offer computer science. I wish that I knew there were so many free tutorial videos online to help me learn whenever I want!

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
The first time I interacted with Bold Idea was during a 'Girls Go Digital' event, which focused on introducing girls to computer science. That inspired and resonated with me!

Mentor Profile: Meet Karthik

Now in his third semester as a Bold Idea mentor, Karthik Velayutham mentors a small team of 13–15 year olds at the Frisco Athletic Center, who are just a few years younger than him.

Karthik is a Senior at Plano East Senior High School. With years of experience as a self- and school-taught programmer, he has his sights set on studying computer science in college. 

We're fortunate to have him on the Bold Idea team, and it's clear that he has a talent for engaging young students in coding.

Meet Karthik...

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
I became interested in tech and programming when my father first introduced me to computers as a young kid. I was hooked to the endless list of possibilities that I saw from the flux of binary. From then on I started learning C, Visual Basic, and other scripting languages.

What do you hope to study in college?
I'm planning on studying Computer Science with a double major in either Math or Statistics.

What are you working on now?
Right now I'm working with Rishabh on a cheaper, refreshable braille display that we hope to implement for visually impaired students.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
As a mentor I've learned a lot about programming itself. Teaching students concepts that I once saw to be so simple helped me realize that I did not fully understand concepts to the full extent. My most memorable moment would be when one of my students at Frisco, Jack, jumped up in excitement of his code working after he debugged it all on his own.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I would definitely tell my younger self that the rubber duck method is the way to go.

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
Teaching others isn't just a one sided thing. When we teach others and help them get better at something, we reinforce our own knowledge and begin to think in different perspectives that we may have not considered before.

Mentor Monday: Meet Claire

Claire is a software engineer at nThrive Monday – Friday and an ideaSpark mentor on Saturdays. Claire lends her programming experience to 5th and 6th grade students each week at the Frisco Athletic Center, who are now learning mobile app development. 

Claire is also an active Bold Idea volunteer, supporting fundraising activities, program design and even volunteer game nights.

Her passion for bringing computer science to younger students has made her a shining asset to the Bold Idea team!

How did you become interested in tech and programming?
My father is a computational chemist who writes software for the pharmaceutical industry. For as long as I can remember, he's given me tips and tricks for programming and anything computer-related. During the summer between 8th and 9th grade, his boss needed a large document transcribed using LaTeX. My dad used this opportunity to teach me my first bit of programming, and I spent that summer falling in love with code. 

What did you study in college?
I majored in Computer Information Systems, specialized in programming, and minored in Business Administration. While code is my true passion, I hope to one day bridge the gap between the technical side and the business side of projects and be the person who can speak both languages.

What are you working on now?
I'm currently a software engineer at nThrive working on healthcare software solutions. My specific product, XClaim, helps "clean" claims in order to improve the acceptance rate by payers, ultimately decreasing the amount the patient has to pay. 

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
I've certainly gained a respect for the kids while mentoring. They are so eager to learn and passionate about programming! If I had been this active that young, I would be much farther along now. I'm so inspired by them! My most memorable moment occurred after someone in my session had pushed back a lot about the necessity of functions. He maintained that it is actually easier to copy and paste the code over and over. Finally, a week later, he had a moment where he REALLY needed a function. Begrudgingly, he added one per our advice, and dropped the code in there. Later, while demoing the code for his classmates, I heard him say, "I can't imagine if I had to write that code in four places!! Look how big that function is!!" 

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I wish I could tell myself to stick with it and pursue it on my own. Outside of my family, I had no resources for learning code, and when I hit high school, I was consumed by the idea of not becoming a dreaded nerd like my father. Turns out being a nerd is pretty cool, and it pays the bills!

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
The thing that resonates the most with me is offering computer science education in areas that just don't. It's weird to me to think if it weren't for my father, I would have had no exposure to code at all, probably in my life. I would have majored in something else, gotten a different job, and never even known about this industry. Now that I *am* a developer, I can't imagine not being one. I want to share computer science with the world and let everyone know that anyone can code - all it takes is willingness to learn!

Mentor Monday: Meet Cassio

A web developer at Kiandastream, Cassio Cristovao volunteers his time each week mentoring Bold Idea students at Rosemont Elementary. 

Meet Cassio...

How did you become interested in tech or programming?
Since little kid I was interested in electronics and curious to know exactly how they work. The first time I used a computer, I was really amazed with what it could do. I remember being taught how to draw in paint and since then my interest has been just rising. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the opportunity to take any programming classes in my high school, but I was able to find a few books about C programming and started teaching myself. But, that didn’t last for long. Well, I guess after that, the rest its really history.

What did you study in college?
I got a degree in Computer Information Technology with a minor in Geography from TCU.

What are you working on now?
My current project is a music streaming service, very similar to Spotify I’m working as a web developer but have designed most of the service itself.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
It has been a really good experience, being able to teach kids how to code and interact with them. It made me realize how can I impact a new generation of young coders and spark their creativity. I really enjoy and look forward on keeping doing so. Everything has been a great experience so I would say just the fact that I’m there and interact with these kinds of very different backgrounds - it's already a memorable moment in itself.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Well that is interesting - I would say to keep on pursing the dream. Frustrating times will come but hard work always pays off.

Is there anything about our  mission that really connects with you?
Yes, empowering young minds is a mission that strikes me as a great opportunity to pass our knowledge to the younger generation. This is something that I look forward to and something I wish I was exposed to at a younger age.

Mentor Monday: Meet Bob

Bob Timm — aka Robot Bob — is a software engineer at Bottle Rocket. This fall he joined the ideaSpark mentoring team that meets Saturdays at Bottle Rocket. His enthusiasm for student success in computer science is evident each week!

Meet Bob...

How did you become interested in tech or programming?
It was not until my early years in college, I took my first programming course in C. My professor gave us challenging and open-ended problems, mostly in the form of games. At the time I was on track for an Electrical Engineering degree and decided after taking that one class to change my major to Computer Science. Around this time, I purchased my first BlackBerry and became obsessed with building simple games on mobile. The year was 2009 and the iPhone was soon to be announced. It was at this time I decided to become a mobile developer, and have done it ever since!

What did you study in college?
Computer Science and Business

What are you working on now?
I am a Software Engineer at a great company in Addison, TX called Bottle Rocket. We build spectacular mobile experiences for some of the world’s largest and most recognized brands. Some of the apps I have worked on include the Coca-Cola Freestyle Android app and Starwood Hotels for Android.

What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
I enjoy helping students find what drives them. Each student is different and is passionate about different activities, whether that be graphical design, sports, games, reading, etc. Finding unique ways to tie their interests to Science is what I really enjoy. My favorite moments during class are when students have that “aha” moment. It is always a great view to see a student become excited about gaining new knowledge.

Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Start at an earlier age! Get part time jobs and internships as early as possible in fields related to your interests. College will have much more perceived value if you understand how to apply topics you learn in class to work experiences you have already had.

Though mileage will vary, I took time off from school to work on apps for Android and iOS. Returning to school for my Computer Science degree, I had no issues coding in my classes. This allowed me to fully absorb the scientific concepts my professors were teaching.

Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
“We are all born with a desire to create.”
I was born with a desire to create. From legos, painting, wood working to the performing arts, these activities have filled my entire life. Programming has only recently become a new creative outlet. I have the chance to create anything, everyday.