Mentor Monday: Meet Bill
A senior engineering manager at Bottle Rocket, William (Bill) Francis has mentored young coders since our ideaSpark program started in early 2016. Since that time, he has worked with student teams at our UT Dallas and Bottle Rocket locations. He even supported his mentee Audrey, age 11, as she published her mobile app 'Animal Rescue' on the Google Play Store - our first student to do so. (Download the app for free on the Play Store). We are honored to have this experienced software engineer with a passion for student innovation on our mentoring team. Meet Bill...
A senior engineering manager at Bottle Rocket, William (Bill) Francis has mentored young coders since our ideaSpark program started in early 2016. Since that time, he has worked with student teams at our UT Dallas and Bottle Rocket locations. He even supported his mentee Audrey, age 11, as she published her mobile app 'Animal Rescue' on the Google Play Store - our first student to do so. (Download the app for free on the Play Store). We are honored to have this experienced software engineer with a passion for student innovation on our mentoring team. Meet Bill...
How did you become interested in technology or programming?
When I was 11, I decided I wanted to make my own video game. Upon investigating, I discovered doing so necessitated I learn programming. So I talked my parents into a TRS-80 under the premise it would be useful for bringing my grades up. It actually did kind of the opposite. In a few days I was hooked on programming and proceeded to stay up till the wee hours of the morning most school nights learning to code -- at least until my mom caught on. In the end though, it all worked out as I now make my living as a software engineer.
What did you study in college?
After graduating from high school, I joined the military. I spent six years as part of the Military Intelligence Brigade working on both software and hardware in places like Korea, Italy, and Germany. After the army I attended University of North Texas where I earned a degree in Information Science.
What are you working on now?
Presently I work on a video delivery app for big brands like NBC, Game Show Network, and the Dallas Cowboys. Some of the projects I've lead include the Chick-fil-A App, Coke's Freestyle App, BET, and Fox News.
What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
For me, being a mentor has given me the opportunity to see in the students that same passion I once had for computer programming. Selfishly, its almost nostalgic for me -- a way to relive some of what to me as a child was a magic, life-shaping event.
One of the most memorable moments for me as a mentor was getting an email from a student's mother asking if I'd be available to meet for a session outside of the normal hours. Her daughter was really excited about and enjoying the app we were building and due to a conflict during the normal scheduled class period was afraid she wouldn't get the chance to finish it. It just so happened I was available and I was very pleased to be able to help a young person build something she was passionate about and proud of.
Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Take the time to dig in and learn as much as you can before banging out the code. Sometimes its hard because its easy to get excited about bringing your creation to life, but there is a lot of value in gaining a level of understanding before typing that first line of code.
Is there anything about the Bold Idea mission that really connects with you?
Coding is empowering regardless of age, race, or gender. I love the idea that I am able to help a young person leave a thumbprint on the world we all share. When I see that spark of an idea grow into a creation that ends up in the app store I can't help but be excited for the students.
We live in a world where at the click of a button a young person can make their app available for download to millions of people all around the globe! What could be more exciting than having even a small hand in the next generation of makers? I feel like the kids I get the honor of working with today, are some of the engineers that will grow up to shape tomorrow!
Mentor Monday: Meet Stan
A VMware platform engineer, Stan Dorsett mentors our 4th – 5th grade team at Rosemont Elementary in Dallas. In fact, Stan was an early advocate for bringing Bold Idea to his children's school in their North Oak Cliff neighborhood, enabling Bold Idea to start serving students in Dallas ISD. We're now lucky to have Stan on our mentoring team and to work with his son Malcolm each week.
A VMware platform engineer, Stan Dorsett mentors our 4th – 5th grade team at Rosemont Elementary in Dallas. In fact, Stan was an early advocate for bringing Bold Idea to his children's school in their North Oak Cliff neighborhood, enabling Bold Idea to start serving students in Dallas ISD. We're now lucky to have Stan on our mentoring team and to work with his son Malcolm each week.
Meet Stan...
How did you become interested in tech or programming?
My Dad was an electrical engineer, so I always had electronic kits and other STEM toys around as a kid. Dad brought home a Commodore C-64 computer when I was in high school and I was hooked.
What did you study in college?
I took some junior college classes on an electrical engineering track, but I didn't follow through with college. I instead learned to operate printing presses as a trade and worked in that field until I jumped back over to computers as a career in my late 20s.
What are you working on now?
I work on automating cloud infrastructure for VMware customers. I really enjoy working with rapidly changing technologies and the thrill of learning something new almost every day.
What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
It is easy to forget the frustration you feel when you are first learning a thing. I enjoy encouraging the students and trying to help them staying positive through that initial frustration. It is fulfilling to see them push through and finally see them figure the thing out.
Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
I wish I would have stuck with my initial love of computers, but I still feel fortunate to have circled back around to it as I did.
Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
The feeling of involvement with kids in my immediate community and the classmates of my children is awesome. I feel thankful to have a program like this available in their school and am grateful for all the other mentors that give of their time to make it a success.
Mentor Monday: Meet Nicki
A consultant at Pariveda Solutions, Nicki Hames has mentored with ideaSpark since the program started. She also lends her experience by training new mentors and contributing to our program design. Nicki's enthusiasm for mentoring young coders has encouraged many of her Pariveda colleagues to also volunteer.
A consultant at Pariveda Solutions, Nicki Hames has mentored with ideaSpark since the program started. She also lends her experience by training new mentors and contributing to our program design. Nicki's enthusiasm for mentoring young coders has encouraged many of her Pariveda colleagues to also volunteer.
Meet Nicki...
How did you become interested in technology and programming?
My mom and dad both had backgrounds in engineering and computer science. They worked at a large technology company so our family has already been oriented in that direction. I took AP Computer Science class my freshman year in high school and enjoyed the logical processes and problem solving. It wasn't until my sophomore and junior year in college when I was doing a lot of data analysis for Psychology research that I was involved in that I realized how much I liked that way of thinking. I haven't looked back since.
What did you study in college?
Double majored in Psychology and Women's & Gender Studies and minored in Computer Science
What are you working on now?
Currently, I am a Consultant at Pariveda Solutions. I am stationed at a large, multi-national real estate client, working on a custom web application. We are in the process of integrating this system with their accounting systems.
What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your favorite experience?
One of the most gratifying moments from mentoring the kids was seeing them realize they could actually solve the problem. There would be this lightbulb that would go off, and then you would see their confidence continue to grow throughout the semester. It's great knowing that I could play a part in that.
Is there anything you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
More so, I wish I could tell my younger self to stick with it. I stopped exploring computer science after my freshman year of high school mainly because of my perception of the stigma of women in tech. My class was filled with all boys and taught by a male teacher. I didn't really have any examples of women succeeding in computer science.
Is there anything about Bold Idea's mission that really connects with you?
I really enjoy being a part of the process to 'empower young minds.' I think the greatest gift we can give to children is education and problem solving so that they have the tools to make their own decisions and shape their own path.
Mentor Monday: Meet Rishabh
A senior at Plano East Senior High School, Rishabh Thakkar has been an ideaSpark mentor since the program started in January. This semester he's one of the veterans with his friend and fellow mentor, Karthik - both serving at the Frisco Athletic Center. Bold Idea is lucky to benefit from his passion and experience. Over the summer Rishabh also helped design the mobile app projects for our students ages 10–14 as part of our Program Design Team.
A senior at Plano East Senior High School, Rishabh Thakkar has been an ideaSpark mentor since the program started in January. This semester he's one of the veterans with his friend and fellow mentor, Karthik - both serving at the Frisco Athletic Center. Bold Idea is lucky to benefit from his passion and experience. Over the summer Rishabh also helped design the mobile app projects for our students ages 10–14 as part of our Program Design Team. Meet Rishabh...
How did you become interested in technology and programming?
My interest in technology and programming began when I first learned about autopilot on airplanes. It really sparked my interest in automation and machines. I pursued that interest through middle school and now high school in learning the programming behind automation and robotics.
What do you want to study in college?
I want to major in Computer Science and minor in Electrical Engineering.
What are you working on now?
Currently, I'm working on a website/communications platform to allow developers and consumers to directly connect. Also, I'm continuing work on my Room Mapping Robot and utilizing drones to perform the task.
What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your favorite experience?
Being a mentor really gave me the opportunity to inspire the upcoming generations to develop the similar interests I had when I was younger. There wasn't a specific memorable moment rather it was a collection of those excited faces I got to see when the kids figured out a working solution to their projects.
What would you tell your younger self about coding?
I'd love to tell my younger self to pursue that interest in coding and technology earlier than I did. I didn't really pick up programming till late middle school. It would have been great if I started a couple years earlier.
How does the Bold Idea mission connect with you personally?
The mission connects with me in a way by showing me that literally anyone has the opportunity to learn and do anything these days. It is just our job to seize it like these kids are by participating in Bold Idea.
Mentor Monday: Meet Elaine
A long-time Bold Idea volunteer, Elaine Torres is a mentor with a team of 7–10 year old ideaSpark students at the Frisco Athletic Center. She's also a member of the Bold Brigade (our brand ambassadors), lending her digital marketing talents.
A long-time Bold Idea volunteer, Elaine Torres is a mentor with a team of 7–10 year old ideaSpark students at the Frisco Athletic Center. She's also a member of the Bold Brigade (our brand ambassadors), lending her digital marketing talents.
Meet Elaine...
How did you become interested in programming?
I took the convoluted approach to tech and programming. Initially my interest was in art. Traditional art, you know paint, drawing, sketching...etc. It wasn't until I discovered that I could take my drawings and convert them into digital pieces that I began to discover my love of technology.
Enter the Emerging Media Program at UT Dallas. This was something that was life changing for me because I discovered that I could combine my love of the arts with digital design. I grew fascinated with the "how" and the "why" the digital programs I was using were doing what they were doing and this led me to discover my admiration of the programming side of things.
What did you study in college?
In college I majored in Liberal Arts, and then at UT Dallas, Emerging Media Arts & Communications.
What are you working on now?
Right now I help other businesses with their digital design and marketing needs. Current projects include: A redesign of my current website, and assisting with the digital marketing for Bold Idea, and another technology group called Digital Dallas.
What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your favorite experience?
So much. I have always loved being a mentor. I have worked with children prior to my connecting with Bold Idea, and just love their energy and enthusiasm. I have taken that enthusiastic mindset into my own life and learned to "think like a kid" when it comes to entrepreneurial ventures. They are all in with everything they do, I try to do the same.
My most memorable moment ha ha...Has to be raining tacos. I worked with two little dudes (who shall remain nameless) to try to help them create an app or game that would bring awareness to recycling. That was the task, what they ended up with was creative, but didn't really bring awareness to recycling. One boy tried to stay on task, and the other well he had a desire to create a video with raining tacos everywhere and explosions, and space, and car crashes...and well I'll let you guess how their project ended up. While they didn't complete the assigned task, I noticed that they both had a creative streak that they might not have discovered were it not for this program. They worked together to create raining tacos, in space, with no car crashes caused because of the tacos everywhere. George Lucas would be proud.
Is there anything you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
OH man so much. I was in a class in 7th grade that taught us DOS to create pictures on the computer...(totally just aged myself there) and I would tell myself to do MUCH better in that class than I did. Who knows what kind of 'THINGS' I could have created.
Is there anything about Bold Idea's mission that really connects with you?
The connection with the next generation of coders, designers, and technical minds connects with me. Children have so much potential and they are amazing little sponges. The more good stuff we put into them, the greater our world could be.
Mentor Monday: Meet Jennica
Jennica Drewe has served as a Bold Idea mentor since we started testing ideaSpark last year. She's also been a driving force on our Program Design Team and recently a mentor trainer. We're excited that she'll be mentoring ideaSpark students in 3rd – 5th grade at UT Dallas again this semester.
Jennica Drewe has served as a Bold Idea mentor since we started testing ideaSpark last year. She's also been a driving force on our Program Design Team and recently a mentor trainer. We're excited that she'll be mentoring ideaSpark students in 3rd – 5th grade at UT Dallas again this semester.
Meet Jennica
How did you become interested in tech or programming?
I have always been interested in tech because my big brother is a gamer and always had a computer or console to play video games on. There is a 6 year age gap between us but video games were always something we could bond over. I became interested in programming when I became a technical writer at Texas Instruments. Programming basics are a big part of what I do on a day-to-day basis and learning some other languages has really helped me.
What did you study in college?
In college, I studied journalism with a concentration in public relations. I also studied Spanish and political science.
What are you working on now?
I am currently working at Texas Instruments as a technical writer, and I am the project lead for our team's staffing company, Brightwing.
I work on a lot of different projects. Everyday I work on the technical documents for about 7 different groups at TI. That includes editing, formatting and creating some graphics. I also work on our standards document, help test new software applications, and help train new team members.
What have you gained from being a mentor? What was your most memorable moment while mentoring?
I have enjoyed getting to see students grow during the semester. We really challenged our students at UTD to work with new people and it was amazing to see how surprised they were when they enjoyed working with someone new. My most memorable mentoring moment was watching my students present their projects in front of everyone at Demo Day and to see how far they got with their projects.
Is there anything that you wish you could tell your younger self about coding?
Think of coding like a puzzle, and it will be a lot more fun when you have to debug!
Is there anything about our mission that really connects with you?
I love that Bold Idea seeks to empower students through code. By being an ideaSpark mentor, we get to teach students so much more than code. It is quite an experience to see a shy student present their project in front of a huge group of people they haven't met before. That is pretty empowering.
Programming the Future of Music
When you think of the purpose of coding, what comes to mind? Most people think of coding as a means for building programs that other people can use on their computers or, perhaps, even their tablet or mobile devices. They would be correct. However, the power of coding can be used for so much more than just to create the programs and apps people use every day. Code has the potential for building anything you can imagine. In fact, you can use code to both make art and change the way in which people experience it. Here's how code is changing the music industry.
When you think of the purpose of coding, what comes to mind? Most people think of coding as a means for building programs that other people can use on their computers or, perhaps, even their tablet or mobile devices. They would be correct. However, the power of coding can be used for so much more than just to create the programs and apps people use every day. Code has the potential for building anything you can imagine. In fact, you can use code to both make art and change the way in which people experience it. Here's how code is changing the music industry.
Make Music
The music industry is inundated with code that builds everything from the music we listen to, the platforms we use to listen to music from our devices, and the concerts we attend. Sure, everyone knows that they can listen to music using platforms such as iTunes, Pandora, and Spotify, but what if you are interested in making your own music?
You can not only access programs that contain pre-coded tools to help you create songs right from your computer, but some programs actually allow musicians to program their own instruments and sounds. Software like Ableton, Pro Tools, and Reason provide users not only the ability to produce masterpieces from their laptops, but also allow coding composers to import their own program tools and even sounds that can be created using audio code languages such as C Sound and Supercollider.
Already play an instrument and need something to help you put your music to paper? Programs like Vexflow and LilyPond are free open-source programs that use coding languages such as JavaScript, Python, and HTML 5 to help young musicians notate the music they create or build out the software to better suit their musical needs.
See Music
Even the concert and music festival experiences are changing at the hands of those who code. Companies like Xylobands and Pixmob program RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology in the form of arm bands and other handheld devices to create innovative light displays for music festivals and performances by some of the industry’s top artists including Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, Coldplay, Black Keys, Arcade Fire, and Tiësto.
Other artists have built apps written in Java and Cocoa to innovate the concert and festival experience. For example, EDM musician Dan Deacon released a free app in 2012 for iPhone and Android that turned the mobile devices of his concert-goers into part of the show. Rather than use RFID, WiFi or the phones’ cell phone connections to interact, the app intuitively responded to audio “calibration tones” from the artist’s set. The result was a way in which Dan Deacon’s fans could truly interact with the lights and sounds of his concerts.
Perhaps you are more interested in classical music. Apps like Octava are striving to enhance the classical concert-going experience by delivering real-time annotations straight to your smart-device informing app users of the piece’s background and facts regarding performance.
No matter your artistic interest or musical taste, code is not just for the computer programmer; it can also be used to compose the musical experience you want to share with the world.
Realizing a Bold Idea Is Never Done Alone
When I became an engineer I faced the most adversity from older women in the community who were engineers as well. They told me the environment was tough, and I would have to work with mostly guys. Nonetheless, I was determined. At the University of Pennsylvania, I was fortunate to find an amazing community that supported women in engineering — the Society of Women Engineers. Later when I entered the working world as a developer my company had an active program that facilitated a community of women in senior roles to develop and shape the careers of fresh college graduates like me. My own enjoyment of engineering has largely been impacted through multi-year relationships and mentorships by men and women who have been in the field.
By Jenn Beecham
Becoming an Engineer
When I became an engineer I faced the most adversity from older women in the community who were engineers as well. They told me the environment was tough, and I would have to work with mostly guys. Nonetheless, I was determined. At the University of Pennsylvania, I was fortunate to find an amazing community that supported women in engineering — the Society of Women Engineers. Later when I entered the working world as a developer my company had an active program that facilitated a community of women in senior roles to develop and shape the careers of fresh college graduates like me. My own enjoyment of engineering has largely been impacted through multi-year relationships and mentorships by men and women who have been in the field.
Women comprise more than 20% of engineering school graduates, but only 11% of practicing engineers are women, according to a 2011 study by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. When I look at these numbers, I know that I got lucky. Many women report leaving Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields due to a lack of support, community and encouragement. As a result, I volunteered with organizations to mentor younger children in engineering and often specifically in coding both during college and my first job. I knew the reason I was able to develop all these skills was because someone was there to help grow my spark of a desire to learn into an actual flame. And the best way to keep that fire going was to spread it to those younger than me.
Moving to Texas
My move to Texas over a year ago was sudden. I was pulled out of environment with the friends and community I knew and placed into a new one. It’s always intimidating to go somewhere and build a community from scratch, but I relied on my passion to continue developing skills to find my new tribe. That’s when I first met Robyn Brown at Code Collective. We were a group of men and women who had coding projects and met on Saturday mornings to discuss our project progress and any new technology out there. I came in with a desire to start a Girls Who Code chapter in Dallas, a group my prior company had worked with. When I spoke of that idea, I learned the group was already involved in volunteering through Girl Scouts and a Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) Public Charter School to teach coding. It was a natural place to start.
The Primordial Soup of Thoughts
When I first spoke with Robyn about the program I wanted to kick off in Dallas, we realized that not only did we share a similar passion but the goal was much bigger. For one, we did not want to teach only girls to break the gender gap in the field. We wanted to accustom children from a young age to work with not only the opposite gender but those of different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. And two, rather than just teach coding, we wanted to change children’s mentality about coding completely. Coding should be like English, a language they all know. It’s not a language for those who are “smart” enough to learn. It’s the language of tomorrow, and it’s a universal language that can be spoken across the world.
We were reaffirmed in our passion at a Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas program fair when a 3rd grader named Lily visited our booth. She told us that of course she wanted to learn how to code. She wanted to be a veterinarian when she grows up. But first, she wanted to make a website to teach others how to take care of animals. And just like that we knew that these young minds had a natural tendency to want to help and were not yet bound by the traditional thoughts of what coding should be and who should learn it.
Becoming Bold Idea
When Robyn approached us about turning our passion project into its own separate non-profit organization, I knew she had the right idea. In order to ensure that the future of the technology industry is well balanced in gender, ethnicity and socioeconomic backgrounds, we must train the generation of today. While we know we cannot impact the problem on a large global or even national scale, we wanted to start with our own community in Dallas.
To me, Bold Idea is a way of saying ‘thank you’ to my mentors. It’s recognizing that what brought me closer to coding wasn’t single one-off workshops; it was multi-year training and bonding with a community. It is realizing that my skills as a coder has made me feel empowered and confident. While those feelings cannot be directly passed on, learning how to code can be. Why am I a part of Bold Idea? Because I want to love our community in the best way I know how: To prepare a younger generation for the future and make them feel empowered to pursue their own passions.
The Path to Bold Idea
I often get asked about the origin story for Bold Idea. To be honest, I struggle to provide an answer – mostly because it was not a simple, one-time ‘aha’ moment, but rather a long series of events and serendipitous conversations. Even today, the organization has evolved from my original idea, and it’s my hope that it will continue to evolve for the better as we expand our leadership team and test the program. Rather than provide a linear timeline of events, I’ll touch on the foundational elements of our organization and why I believe so strongly in them.
By Robyn Brown
I often get asked about the origin story for Bold Idea. To be honest, I struggle to provide an answer — mostly because it was not a simple, one-time "aha" moment, but rather a long series of events and serendipitous conversations. Even today, the organization has evolved from my original idea, and it's my hope that it will continue to evolve for the better as we expand our leadership team and test the program.
Rather than provide a linear timeline of events, I'll touch on the foundational elements of our organization and why I believe so strongly in them.
Mentoring
Often what we create and become as an adult is what we wish we had as a young person. For me, it was a mentor. I wish, as a teen, that I had an older sister or a young woman to encourage me, to show me that there was more to life after High School. I had no clue what opportunities were possible for me and little confidence in my abilities.
Could I be that mentor to a younger person, maybe a 16-year-old with unlimited creativity and courage, who just needs encouragement? And that’s what I did. For the past ten years, I've served as a mentor to dozens of teen and college-age girls as a Girl Scout troop leader. We go on college tours, tent camp, out to dinner or simply meet at Starbucks to talk about life and school. We even went on a dinosaur dig once — how cool is that?! They know I have their back and would go out of my way for them.
It’s my firm belief that any student — girl or boy — deserves a chance. Their ideas should be nurtured and taken seriously. I've worked with girls who other adults wrote off and are now thriving young women. Computer science is a challenging subject for any new learner that demands creativity, critical thinking and problem solving – skills not exactly honed well in today's standardized-testing education environment. Let’s sit alongside students as they learn to code – believe in them, encourage them and challenge them.
Community
Anything worth doing should be done together. There's a reason I mentor teams of girls rather than just individuals, as in similar youth organizations. The girls need support from each other and not just their mentor. I've enjoyed watching them build strong friendships and collaborate on service projects. We sit around a campfire, talk or laugh — you can feel that there’s a real bond.
Relationships are critical in life. I could not have gotten this far in the organization without the people on my team who validate my ideas and build on them. There’s a mentality that we're all in this together — we build together, we learn together and we see the outcomes together. From trivia night to bowling and numerous shared meals, we also play well together!
Our team also wants to dispel the notion that coding is a loner activity done in a windowless room with zero social interaction. Rather, it's team-based and collaborative in well-lit, open environments. Coding education should reflect that. We are building a program with small teams of students and mentors who learn together and complete projects together. Experience leads me to believe that the outcomes of this model will be stronger than individual learning.
Social impact
It was never our intention to teach students to code for the sake of coding or even to feed the computer science pipeline at universities. Computer science is — and has always been — about helping people, making their lives easier and the world better for all of us. There's a great phrase by Bill Ferriter, a "radical" educator, that conveys this idea the best: Technology is a tool, not a learning outcome. For us, coding is the tool for students to build technology solutions to social issues.
I remember social impact always being a part of the idea for our program — though now it's central to our purpose. I owe a lot of that to The Grove, the West End neighborhood-based co-working space where Bold Idea was born. There, I met people like Chirag Gupta who sparked the original idea and Ben Davis and Chelsea Masters who would eventually join the founding team, plus the numerous people who have contributed advice. The Grove is unique, encouraging its members to pursue ideas that support a social mission. I think that's what drove many of us to join in the first place and connect so well together.
I am blessed that I was raised by parents who so easily help those around them. Not because we should "do our part to make the world a better place" or to feel good about ourselves — it’s just what you do. When your elderly neighbor's washing machine breaks down, you fix it. When a single mom needs a break, you step in to watch her kids. My dad serves lunches in the summer at a mobile home park in our town for kids on the school lunch program. Because of their influence, I don't have to consider how or if I serve others. It's ingrained in me. Well, obviously you help your community!
Why me?
I am not a coder by profession, though I’m learning. I've spent the past ten years of my professional life writing marketing content for software companies and technology startups. I loved working in the technology space, lending my writing talents to engineer and developer teams. These were (mostly) brilliant and kind people, who were building awesome things — whether 4D subsurface modeling using an Xbox or DAS antennas in sports stadiums so fans could share photos over a reliable network. I geeked out over what they built, and they loved including me on their teams, and explaining features and use cases to me.
From that experience, I came to understand how much we rely on technology every day without even realizing it. The world is changing rapidly, and we have a greater need for technology solutions that will propel us forward as a society — from curing disease and meeting energy demand to feeding growing populations and democratizing knowledge. And the role of builder is no longer relegated to career technologists. Professions as diverse as doctors, marketing directors, teachers and accountants must become proficient in coding. It's not a future outlook, it's happening now. And really — why prepare kids for their future when we can prepare them to be builders now?
This hasn't answered the question, "why me?" Maybe I'm bold enough to want to do something about it. Maybe the past 10+ years has just been a buildup to this point so I could gain the communication and organizing skills, plus the connections, to make this a reality. And again, I can’t do this alone. It takes a team of passionate people who work together to make this outreach possible. I love working with my passionate team members because together we create something that didn't exist before we got connected.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it’s the only thing that ever has.”
Inspiring Young Minds: A Developer's Responsibility
I was about 17 when I had my first "aha" moment as a new coder. Driven by the (somewhat misguided) desire to share mp3 files with friends, I built my own website using HTML and Macromedia Flash, hosting it on geocities.com for the world to see. Picture this: A main navigation designed like a car stereo knob, which scrolled through a list of links as you turn a knob. Animated GIFs of hula girls and tiki torches decorated the margins. And, of course, let’s not forget the ubiquitous “under construction” sign. To be honest, it was bad… but it was a lot of fun.
I was about 17 when I had my first "aha" moment as a new coder. A talented friend in my journalism class showed me something I never thought possible for a high schooler, let alone someone several years younger than me. He built his own website and published it on the world wide web. Driven by the (somewhat misguided) desire to share mp3 files with friends, he inspired me to build my own website. He showed me the magic of HTML and Macromedia Flash, and how to host it on geocities.com for the world to see. Before long, I had my creation. Picture this: A main navigation designed like a car stereo knob, which scrolled through a list of links as you turn a knob. Animated GIFs of hula girls and tiki torches decorated the margins. And, of course, let's not forget the ubiquitous “under construction” sign. To be honest, it was bad… but it was a lot of fun.
In that moment I realized the raw potential of this new tool I had at my disposal. I felt like I had discovered a new superpower. Using nothing but the family computer, I could make virtually anything. I became obsessed with building things in my new digital sandbox. Every problem seemed to have a solution — all I had to do was make it. The ideas really started flowing then, and they haven't stopped since.
The turning point
“I needed to do something different. I needed to use my superpowers to make that ‘dent in the universe’ everyone keeps talking about.”
Now at 36, I code for a living, and I absolutely love what I do — though it's hard at times to see that. Looking back over the years, I've created a lot: An online learning platform for medical students, a full-featured content management system and even a website that housed half a billion cup codes letting you redeem your empty Slurpee for some serious swag.
Yet somehow the more I built, the less I cared about what I was building. Coding became just a way to earn a paycheck. Eventually that original spark, that sheer pleasure of creating something from nothing, was all but gone. Only recently did it dawn on me that I needed to do something different. I needed to use my superpowers to make that “dent in the universe” everyone keeps talking about.
How did I get to that point? I realized what it really means to be a developer. Through technology, developers accelerate the rate of change and progress in everything around us. And maybe it's so ubiquitous in all of our lives that we fail to notice it — or even appreciate it. Think about it: we have robots that can vacuum our floors. Nearly everyone has a supercomputer in their pocket. People are increasingly substituting a university education for a web-based one at a fraction of the cost.
Powered by code
When Twitter first debuted in 2006, I thought it was just a silly Internet fad. But it didn’t take long for Twitter and other social media platforms to be the vehicle that sparked an entire country’s revolution. In 2011 the hashtag #Jan25th was used to mobilize protesters to join the demonstration at Tahrir Square. Though the outcome was unintended, it was developers who enabled that. As a developer, that makes me bust my buttons with pride. You see, we are not just users of technology — we are the builders. Developers are the primary movers in the biggest social revolution since the invention of the printing press.
I couldn't help but ask myself, what have I been doing? As adults, we tend to reflect on our years and consider everything we might have done differently, if only we knew then what we know now. We wonder how many years might have been wasted along the way trying to find the right path. For many of us, that need fuels our desire to teach younger generations so they don’t repeat our mistakes.
A couple years ago, while visiting family, I was sitting on the couch hammering out some code for a client’s website. Sammy, my 10-year-old nephew, sat down next to me to see what I was doing. With big eyes he looked at my screen as if I was decoding The Matrix.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“I'm hacking the government mainframe,” I said with a straight face. “Sssh, don't tell anybody.”
“No, seriously, what is all that on your screen?”
“Ok, you got me. Well, this is called code. It's what I use to build websites.”
I went on to show him how every website is made of code, and how everything I need to make a full website is right here on this laptop.
“Wow, is that like, your job?” he asked.
“Yep. Believe it or not people actually pay me to make things on the computer!”
Of course, I did my best to seize that opportunity, as he was brimming with curiosity. I showed him how we can even make simple video games just by writing code in a text file. I asked Sammy if he wanted me to teach him, and his face lit up with excitement. Moments later two more of my nephews walked in, along with my niece, Brooke.
“Hey what are you guys doing?” they asked.
“We're learning to code video games,” I said. “You guys wanna learn too?”
“Sure!” said Brooke, without hesitation.
One nephew objected. “No, Brookie, girls don't do programming stuff.”
Woah, I thought. They're not even teenagers, and yet they've already adopted this gender stereotype. I need to nip this in the bud.
“Hey guys, that's not true at all. In fact, I actually work with a girl coder, and she's one of the most clever web developers I've ever met. You never know, Brooke could come up with the next billion-dollar idea. You should be a lot nicer to her.”
The look on Brooke’s face was priceless.
I realized something that day. Not only did I have the opportunity to share the world of coding with these kids — it was my responsibility. At that point it was no longer just about coding, it was about teaching them that they can do anything they wanted, girl or boy. A few days later I found myself teaching an impromptu Python class to seven of my nephews and nieces. It was by far the most rewarding thing I’d done in a long time.
The spark rekindled
Later that year I met Robyn Brown, a freelancer working out of a co-working space called The Grove. I'd heard that she was starting a program to teach kids coding, and we became quick friends. I immediately jumped on the chance to participate in a workshop she organized to teach web development to 25 pre-teen Girl Scouts. At that workshop, I witnessed an “aha” moment in a girl who suddenly realized what she could now do. Her mom told me later that her daughter came in thinking that "coding wasn't for me.” By the end of the workshop she was talking about all sorts of ideas for her new website.
“I’m all in. Let’s do this.”
The following week over some gourmet pizza, Robyn shared with me her bold idea. She understood that it wasn't enough to conduct one-off workshops that taught coding for the sake of coding. For years Robyn has been mentoring Girl Scouts and helping them work as a team to make a big impact in their communities. She wants to build that same foundation of mentoring and teamwork into a long-term program that would empower our community's youth to be builders of technology. I didn't need much convincing before I said: “I'm all in. Let's do this.”
In less than a year I went from serving as a one-time volunteer, to a co-founder of Bold Idea, inc, and eventually accepting the role of Board Chair. I have made a commitment to our organization and the values it stands for, including community, inspiration and discovery. I believe wholeheartedly in our mission: To develop and empower young minds to execute bold ideas as a team through the power of coding.
This year, I’ve been mentoring several students in our Open Coding Hours program. One of those students, Bryan, is a smart and goofy High School sophomore. I sit alongside him and offer guidance as he learns Python. I share with him my love for a programming language that I use daily, and I beam with pride when a new coding concept sinks into his head. We talk about the projects he can build with Python, HTML and Javascript. I share with him my own experiences and the lessons I’ve learned throughout my Web development career.
I believe that as developers, it's our responsibility to pass the torch to the next generation of technology builders. In doing so, we have the opportunity to influence them in a positive way inspire them to think big and make their own dent in the universe.
At Bold Idea, we are looking for developers who are passionate about what they do and want to help foster the next generation of technology builders. Interested? Contact me at ben@boldidea.org and let's talk.