Level Up: Coding Class Coming to Cherkasy!!

October 11, 2018

This summer, we offered an exciting new master class at Kompas Park Youth Camp. Two professional programmers, Drew from the American team and Kirill from the Ukrainian team, collaborated to offer a Web Design Master Class. Eight interested campers attended this class each day and learned valuable beginner coding and web design skills. The class was a hit! After seeing the success of the class, we wondered, how can we continue this type of training throughout the year?

Over the last several months, dedicated Hope Now volunteers and partners have been collaborating in order to transition this Master Class into a weekly class in the city of Cherkasy, called Level Up:Coding. So far, Kirill has led the charge to make this class happen, as he’s recruited instructors, found a space to host the classes, and started planning curriculum for the classes. These weekly classes, taught by volunteer Christian IT professionals, will be offered to children from disadvantaged families and orphan graduates living in Cherkasy who desire to learn more about coding and programming.

Why will this class be such an important opportunity for these teenagers? First of all, children in Ukraine who go to good schools receive excellent computer training, whereas children who cannot afford to go to good schools, or children who grow up in orphanages, are not given the same level of training. Therefore, there is a growing gap between the technological skills that advantaged and disadvantaged children have in Ukraine, leading to increased employment opportunities for those who have received computer training and decreased opportunities for those who have not. The goal of Level Up:Coding is to close this gap and give disadvantaged children a chance to gain valuable knowledge in order to compete with the rest of the rising workforce in Ukraine.

Secondly, over the last decade, the city of Cherkasy has seen a rapid increase of IT companies and startups. This is a great encouragement for the economy of Cherkasy, since working in IT usually brings in higher wages from international clients, growing the economy of the city as a whole. However, even with this rapid growth of IT employers and job opportunities in Cherkasy, there is a lack of beginner-level training opportunities for those interested in the field. So, again, those who have grown up with a good education are more prepared for the growing IT field whereas children who have not received modern education fall farther behind. Students who attend Level Up:Coding will be taught basic computer skills and beginner level coding in order to prepare them to continue their education in the field and pursue well-paying IT jobs.

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