The first graduating class of 1904coders from Lift For Life Academy graduated on Thursday, November 30th during a demo and presentation day at CIC@CET. 1904Labs created the “Coders” program with the goal of teaching students that coding is not limited to people in a tech ecosystem. The graduation and demo day celebrated the students’ creation and offered each graduate the opportunity to showcase the individualized version of an app that stemmed from the same code.
“Lift for Life Academy is making an amazing difference in this community. They have a beautiful vision for change and investing in the youth of Saint Louis. It’s an honor to work alongside them and play a small part in contributing to this vision. This past semester we ran our first coding class with LFLA, and it was awesome! We had the privilege of working with 12 students during this inaugural season. The students came with no background in coding, yet after only 10 class sessions, each student had developed working mobile apps of their creative design, and they did an excellent job! Of course, it’s fun to see the finished products – but it’s even more rewarding to experience the excitement, creativity, and inspiration that emanated from the students as they progressively tackled various challenges and overcame barriers. They realized that they CAN do this! Plus, the students gained skills and positive values that transcend technology and carry over into all aspects of life. This first semester was a great success, and we look forward to many more!” mentioned one of the volunteer mentors from 1904Labs.
Mr. Marshall Cohen, Founder & Director at Lift For Life Academy mentioned in a statement that “We want to make sure and have students ‘marketable’ when they graduate. Having skills like coding opens doors tenfold in career opportunities. Having 1904 partner in coding breaks down barriers and opens up opportunities that wouldn’t exist.” The Showroom at CIC@CET looked like a small tech lab, and the positive energy shared by both volunteers and students was palpable. One of the presenting students, Ciara said, “I like coding because it’s fun, you get to learn new experiences and create games no one never knew was a thing.” Another student, Jordan told the group “I like coding because they give children opportunities to try new things and be creative.” and Demarion, had everyone laughing with his statement about coding and creating new apps to make money.
The inaugural 1904Labs Coders program graduation and demo day was such a total success that the leadership of 1904Labs is working on a “Coders” 2.0 and plan to continue expanding the program and offering kids the opportunity to become the next generation of innovators.
For more information about Lift For Life Academy go to http://www.liftforlifeacademy.org/
To find out more about the Coders program powered by 1904Labs go to https://1904labs.com/
Photos courtesy of Ken Zheng
