Coded by Kids

There is significant social and economic inequity created when people from underrepresented groups aren’t able to participate in the tech and innovation economies. The lack of equitable access to high-quality education and training increases the inequity faced by disadvantaged communities and underrepresented youth. 

Black/ African American, Hispanic/ Latinx, LGBTQ+ people, and women are significantly underrepresented in the tech industry and among startup founders.  This diversity gap is especially noticeable in Philadelphia, which ranks as one of the top emerging tech cities with nearly 10,000 new tech jobs created since 2013.  Despite this exponential growth, there is still an undeniable lack of resources offered to underrepresented students to excel as tech and innovation leaders.  Of 33,000 computer, engineering, and science workers in Philadelphia in 2017, only 37% were women, 15% were Black, and 7% were Latinx. 

Resources that bridge the economic and social gap for underrepresented communities in areas of tech and innovation are especially limited in a city such as Philadelphia, where nearly 26% of the population lives below the poverty line and the spending gap between wealthy and low-income school districts in Pennsylvania ranked the highest in the nation in 2015. 

The lack of progress in addressing inequity, especially racial inequity, is driven in part by a focus on short-term solutions that address the results of the problem, not the actual problem. 

Technology and innovation are not themselves the solution to racial inequity and injustice, but they are two critical parts of the solution, driving economic growth and social change in ways that we could never have imagined. 

Coded by Kids (CBK) works to increase economic and social mobility in underrepresented communities by addressing the roots of systemic racial inequity.  CBK bridges the learning gap by making long-term commitments to our young people and preparing them for careers and entrepreneurship opportunities in high-growth areas of the tech and innovation space, specifically in roles with low potential for automation.  CBK prepares underrepresented young people to succeed as tech and innovation leaders and startup founders through increased access to project-based learning and exposure to mentorship, resources, and support networks.

The flagship program of our pipeline is CBK Classroom, which makes web development engaging and relevant for students.  Instructors use project-based learning to help students build industry-relevant skills and prepare them for career opportunities.  Along with guided instruction, students master core tech concepts and independently build their own websites.  The program focuses not only on technical proficiency but also on developing students’ critical thinking, collaboration, and problem-solving abilities. 

CBK Classroom is divided into three levels for students ages 8-18 to learn basic to advanced web development, digital design, and tech startup entrepreneurship concepts: Explore; Launch; and Accelerate.   

The beginner level, CBK Explore, serves the greatest number of students with a 32-hour curriculum that exposes students to introductory-level instruction in software engineering and web development.  Students reinforce their learned skills by completing their own websites using HTML and CSS programming languages.  

Students who progress through CBK Classroom from the beginner to the intermediate level, CBK Launch, continue their tech education with topics including basic front-end framework and Javascript, and begin prospecting coding careers and tech-related college majors, as well as engaging with tech professionals through workshops during this 96-hour curriculum.  

Students will then advance to CBK Accelerate, a 120-hour program that we are piloting and working on formally launching.  At this advanced level, students will be immersed in our most in-depth programming, including advanced HTML and CSS, intermediate Javascript, and basic back-end framework, and will build a portfolio they can use to seek professional opportunities.  

Throughout students’ experience with CBK Classroom, they have opportunities to compete in numerous competitions, including our annual Ctrl+Shift Coding Competition for a $7,500 grand prize.  The goal of Ctrl+Shift is to excite high school students about opportunities in tech by empowering them to think boldly and build projects that change the way they interact with their communities.  This competition is designed to showcase the students’ work and demonstrate what’s possible when we invest in high-quality tech education for underrepresented youth.

High school and college students involved with CBK also have access to one-on-one mentorship and internship opportunities, including our Tech & Innovation Internship Program and our new Validation & Ideation Internship Program for entrepreneurial-minded individuals (up to age 24).  Additionally, these students are eligible to apply for CBK Draft Studios, the first student-run digital design and web development agency in the greater Pennsylvania region.  In addition to advancing students’ technical knowledge, Draft Studios gives them access to real-world experience dealing with clients and delivering projects.  Students are assigned a curriculum consisting of intermediate to advanced programming languages and work in teams with a mentor to complete web development projects for actual clients, including local small businesses and nonprofits. 

Our programs prepare students to successfully complete a tech or computer science related major in college, begin careers in tech, or even launch tech and tech adjacent startups.

There are significant social, economic, and structural barriers preventing BIPOC people from taking advantage of opportunities in the tech and innovation space, although it holds the greatest potential to rapidly move people forward socioeconomically.  CBK bridges the economic and social gaps faced by these underrepresented young people, by providing opportunities to enhance their social capital and financial wealth through tech and innovation.  CBK partners with schools, community groups, and local governments to turn community spaces into education centers, providing free tech and innovation education to these underrepresented youth.  

67% of CBK students are Black or Latinx and roughly 32% are female.  82% of our students are low–income and are unable to access most coding-focused technology education programs, although these programs provide access to significant employment opportunities.  The median household income in the neighborhoods we serve throughout the Philadelphia region ranges from $18,557 to $58,784.

Coded by Kids’ CEO and Founder, Sylvester Mobley, entered the tech industry as a young, black male.  The space was innovative and exciting, but the lack of diversity was glaringly obvious, inspiring the first iteration of Coded by Kids.  The early days of the organization consisted of Sylvester mentoring students on Saturday mornings at the rec center his children went to.  Word spread quickly about the free tech education classes, until a handful of students became hundreds, learning in dozens of schools and community centers across Philadelphia.

The early curriculum for CBK Classroom was created by volunteers in tech fields who came from underrepresented groups.  Since the development of the initial curriculum, we have conducted regular user interviews with students to assess and make program structure/ curriculum modifications.  Additionally, interviews with the students’ parents and caregivers have spurred changes in programming, including program scheduling.   

To round out our talent development pipeline while using tech and innovation as a catalyst for driving equity, CBK convened a city-wide tech and innovation ecosystem – the “1Philadelphia” Initiative.  1Philadelphia provides underrepresented Philadelphians with the resources and support needed to find success in the tech and innovation space.  We are not only addressing the barriers that impact underrepresented people in tech, but we are creating an ecosystem that is focusing on strengthening and growing underrepresented entrepreneurship and tapping into wealth generation created in the tech and innovation industry.  Industry partners, government officials, local small businesses, large corporations, foundations, and educational institutions all comprise 1Philadelphia and provide input from a holistic view to best serve our target population. 

As evidenced through the structure of our programming, we wholeheartedly believe in the necessity of mentorship and partnership to be successful.  Beyond monetary support, we hope that you can help us convert our well-established local programming into a national model that can truly transform the future for today’s underrepresented youth throughout the United States.  One key to our expansion that we believe a team would offer support with is the development of robust evaluation and impact measurement tools and practices.  We are also seeking support with the development of a more engaged Board of Directors who will help us reach and exceed our goals. 

We are at the frontlines fighting inequity in digital and tech education and elevating underrepresented youth from marginalized communities.  CBK recognizes that the lack of progress in addressing inequity, especially racial inequity, is driven in part by the siloed nature of government, the nonprofit sector, business, and educational institutions.  Furthermore, we recognize that in order to address the systemic inequities in tech, education, and our society, we have to dive deeper and not only dismantle oppressive systems but rebuild them to support historically marginalized and vulnerable populations.  As a step toward dismantling these silos and rebuilding a new system, CBK convened 1Philadelphia in the fall of 2020 in collaboration with a network of government agencies, funders, businesses, educational institutions, and community partners.  

1Philadelphia is a citywide initiative focused on creating an equitable tech and innovation ecosystem for people from underrepresented groups.  Our collective mission is to create an unstoppable network of tech and innovation education, resources, and support to empower underrepresented people for futures in tech and innovation.  In addition to career opportunities, 1Philadelphia aims to expand opportunities for entrepreneurship, enabling more underrepresented founders to start high-growth tech and innovation driven startups that successfully reach meaningful exits.  

1Philadelphia’s tech ecosystem will support underrepresented youth from cradle to career.  Programs will be implemented in schools, recreation centers, and community centers throughout the city, connecting traditional school-based learning to community-based education programs, giving people the ability to move seamlessly from program to program.  This model, which benefits individuals, organizations, and the city as a whole, can be replicated in cities across the country for a catalytic positive effect.

To further demonstrate the need for our innovative solution to the underrepresentation of Black and Brown people in the tech and innovation space, consider that eight-year-old students join CBK Classroom trying to learn to code, but they have not developed their literacy skills through their school-based education.  Students come through our program struggling in algebra and pre-calculus because they lacked the foundational skills in their early learning years.  They are therefore unable to advance into STEM-related majors in college because they have to pay for additional credits to satisfy basic math requirements.  Not only is our solution building high-quality and engaging education programs, but we are providing underrepresented students with a deep level of support and resources that prepare them for tech-focused higher education, leadership positions, and entrepreneurship positions.  

Our solution is catalytic because if we are successful in raising cohorts of underrepresented founders and tech leaders, the impact on their ability to build generational wealth and invest in their communities will be exponential.  By creating equity in tech and innovation education and promoting diversity and inclusion in the tech industry, we are providing a platform for underrepresented young people to excel and access the financial and social wealth endemic to the highly profitable tech industry.  We are leveling the playing field.

Our long-term impact goals fall into two main categories, from which we build our short-term impact goals.

Over the next three to five years, our first long-term impact goal is to influence and support underrepresented people throughout Philadelphia and other areas of the country to pursue opportunities in the tech/ innovation space and startup space.  We are aiming to provide underrepresented young people access to programming in three additional cities and provide programming to at least 2,000 underrepresented young people each year.

To achieve this goal, we are focusing the next year on increasing the understanding and interest of underrepresented people in the tech and startup spaces, including by launching additional awareness campaigns.  We will provide young people and their parents with the information needed to decide if they are interested in the tech and startup space, with the goal of achieving a high level of happiness both among young people who participate and among their parents.  We are also focusing on increasing the number of underrepresented young people who are reached through our programs, services, and initiatives, with a particular focus on Latinx and women.

Our second long-term impact goal for the next three to five years is to increase the organization’s sustainability and operating capacity.  We will ensure that the organization has the ability to continuously track, measure, and report on the 7-10 highest priority metrics for individual students and the ability to recruit, hire, train, and move instructors into the classroom within 3-months of hire.

To achieve this goal, we have identified three objectives for the next year.  We will improve our ability to generate revenue from regional and national funders and increase the operating effectiveness of our Revenue (development) Team.  We will continue directing the focus of our Service Delivery Manager to increase our ability to track, measure, and report student achievement and progress as well as organizational impact.  Lastly, we will increase the capacity of our Learning and Instructional Team and improve their capability to manage the status, progress, and obstacles in the development of curriculum, standards, and learning resources. 

To evaluate and measure success, Coded by Kids places greater importance on the depth of our impact with each student served, over the breadth of impact.  

To measure the depth of our progress over the short to mid-term, we measure: 

• The interest our students have in tech careers, tech/ computer science related majors, and tech startup focused entrepreneurship, and how our programs increase their interest.

• How prepared our students are for tech careers, tech/ computer science related majors, and tech startup focused entrepreneurship, and how our programs increase their preparedness.

• The level of satisfaction both parents and students have with our programs. 

• The level of engagement both parents and students have with our programs. 

• Student retention rates and attendance rates within our programs.

We expect to achieve the following results for students who complete at least an exposure level CBK Classroom course:

• 75% interested in career opportunities in the tech and innovation sector;

• 80% interested in tech and innovation related college majors;

• 90% have a greater understanding of the opportunities available to them in the tech and innovation sector

To measure the breadth of our progress over the short to mid-term, we measure: 

• The number of young people served.

• The number of young people currently enrolled. 

• The number of young people served that go on to major in a tech or computer science related major. 

• The number of young people served that complete tech internships.

• The number of young people served that go on to work in tech and innovation focused roles.

• The number of programs running each week and the number of locations that we are running programs in.

The main indicator of our long-term success is increased socioeconomic equity for Black and other underrepresented Philadelphia residents.  This means more people from underrepresented groups working in tech and innovation and moving into leadership positions, and more underrepresented founders starting high-growth tech and innovation driven startups that successfully reach meaningful exits.

Coded by Kids’ theory of change involves starting to work with students at a young age, building them up using our bold talent development model which is modeled after those used to develop and produce the highest-level performing athletes, such as AAU Basketball.  This structured, multi-year program model emphasizes providing supportive training, resources, and skills development as athletes (students) progress from one level to the next.  The result is an individual with the skills, confidence, and necessary resources to thrive in competitive landscapes and assume leadership roles.  By applying similar models to tech and innovation education with underrepresented youth, CBK has created a pipeline that prepares underrepresented young people to succeed as tech and innovation leaders and startup founders through increased access to project-based learning and exposure to industry mentors, resources, and support networks.

Evidence to support the link between our activities, outputs, and outcomes exists in three areas: internal validation, external validation, and external recognition.  

Internal validation that our work produces the desired results includes:

• 81% of students stated they found the class to be “very enjoyable” or “extremely enjoyable”

• 84% of students rated the overall performance of their instructor as “above average” or “excellent”

• After the first program level, which focuses on exposing students with no prior exposure to web development, 87% of students stated they were “very interested” or “extremely interested” in learning web development

• Additionally, we have a 100% project completion rate for students who complete our programs

External validation that our work produces the desired results includes:

• CBKs’ students have been accepted to computer science programs at colleges ranging from Drexel University to Penn State

• We are currently working with industry partners to create separate leadership tracks at their companies, specifically for students, because of the recognized level of performance of our students

• We have several clients who receive web design services from our Draft Studios interns that have kept the team on as their technical staff after the completion of their initial projects, validating the level of skill and quality produced by our students

• Most Draft Studios clients are referred to us by word of mouth validating the reputation we’ve built for producing high-quality technical work 

Additionally, Coded by Kids’ CEO Sylvester Mobley has received numerous forms of external recognition applauding CBK’s impact and significance to the community, including: Forbes 2021 The Culture 50 Champions; Philadelphia Business Journal’s Most Admired CEOs, Tech Disruptor Award, and Veterans of Influence Award; 2018 Philadelphia Award; University City Science Center Nucleus Cultivator Award; Please Touch Museum Portia and Otto Sperr Legacy Award; Philadelphia 76ers Game Changer Award; KYW Game Changer Award; Philadelphia Academies Stand and Deliver Award; a Philadelphia City Council Citation; and a Philadelphia City Council Resolution. 

The success of our programming is best illustrated through the achievements of our students, like Evan and Phil.

Evan was first introduced to CBK as a high school senior and a mentee of CEO Sylvester Mobley.  Interested in learning about startups and the tech industry, Evan was part of our first class of Draft Studios students.  Currently a junior at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, with a double concentration in Information Systems and Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Evan now works as the Project Management Lead for the Draft Studios team, leading and developing junior team members.  Evan is also the Co-President of Philly Startup Leaders’ Student Board and is passionate about the future of work and creating opportunities for underrepresented communities to thrive as the world is constantly changing. 

Phil was also introduced to CBK while in high school and is now a junior at Drexel University majoring in Computer Science.  Like Evan, Phil works as the Technical Lead for the Draft Studios team (when not in class).  Along with employing Phil, CBK worked with him to cover the gap in his tuition left by his federal financial aid package when he did not have the resources to manage the remaining costs.  Our financial support will allow Phil to focus on school and developing as a Technologist. 

Outside of Draft Studios, Evan and Phil have also come together to launch a startup!  With Evan as the CEO and Phil as the CTO, their startup called Scaffold Data is a no-code platform built for education.  Scaffold Data is Airtable for education, allowing schools to pull data from a wide range of sources and use that data to build solutions that fit their unique needs. 

Web development powers our solution.  In CBK’s beginner-level tech education programming, students are exposed to introductory-level instruction in software engineering and web development, using programming languages including HTML and CSS.  Our intermediate-level programs focus on topics including basic front-end framework and Javascript, as well as progressing with HTML and CSS.  Advanced-level programming will immerse students in our most in-depth programming, including advanced HTML and CSS, intermediate Javascript, and basic back-end framework.  Students who advance to intern/ work in Draft Studios learn intermediate and advanced programming languages and stacks, including Javascript and MERN, and complete web development projects for actual clients.

CBK Academy is the online version of CBK Classroom and our response to COVID-19.  Taking our programming online allowed us to continue providing high-quality coding education to students that were currently enrolled in our in-person CBK Explore classes, while also giving access to every internet-connected child with a computer.  We have developed an online curriculum and program structure that introduces students to tech and provides real-world uses through project-based learning.  Additionally, through our coding competitions, internships, and mentoring programs, students continue to connect with industry mentors and other professionals through virtual workshops. 

The lack of visible diverse role models and mentors for underrepresented groups, such as minorities and women, contributes to the lack of diversity in STEM fields.  To challenge the lack of diverse role models and mentors in tech, and demonstrate our commitment to equity and inclusion, CBK has recruited a diverse staff and board representing different ethnicities, gender, ages, and backgrounds who offer our students – a largely African-American population and 32% girls – the experience of a role model who comes from a similar space as they do.

At the heart of our work is our commitment to creating equity in tech and promoting diversity and inclusion in the tech industry.  Just as we are taking a community-based approach to building a citywide system that connects underrepresented youth to resources for economic growth through tech & innovation, so is our organizational model and structure.  Within our organization, we aim to model our values by employing leadership, staff, and board members who are representative of the communities we serve.

The majority of CBK instructors identify with groups underrepresented in tech.  When students are taught by instructors they can relate to or who come from the same neighborhoods as them, they are empowered and more likely to envision themselves pursuing technology and succeeding.

CBK’s leadership team currently consists of the Founder/ CEO who is Black and a veteran and our Chief Operating Officer who is Black and female.  Of CBK’s nine Board of Directors, 67% are Black/ African American, 22% are white, and 11% are Middle Eastern and North African, and one of our board members was previously an undocumented refugee.  44% of our board members are female.  Many of CBK’s board members did not grow up with resources and lacked the networks and connections that we work to provide for our students.  Our board members have diverse professional backgrounds as well, coming from the tech industry, education, and government, additionally, several have launched their own tech startups. 

Our formal diversity policy is as follows:

Coded by Kids is committed to a diverse, inclusive, and equitable environment where all board members, staff, volunteers, and members feel respected and valued regardless of gender, age, race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation or identity, disability, education, or any other bias.  We’re committed to being non-discriminatory and providing equal opportunities for employment, volunteering, and advancement in all areas of our work.  We respect the value that diverse life experiences bring to our board and leadership and we strive to listen to their views and give them value.  We’re committed to modeling diversity, inclusion, and equity and maintaining fair and equal treatment for all.

Our Board’s philosophy on our goals to provide informed leadership for diversity, inclusion, and equity include:

• We will strive to see diversity, inclusion, and equity in connection with our vision and mission for the benefit of those we serve.

• We aim to recognize and address inequities in our policies, programs, and services.

• We will update and document progress on our diversity, equity, and inclusion practices.

• We promise to investigate underlying assumptions that interfere with our diversity policy.

• We commit to advocating for systemic inequities that impact our work at the board level and address it according to this policy and in accordance with our mission.

• We commit to challenging commonly accepted notions about what constitutes strong leadership within our organization.

• We commit to being transparent about diversity in all our interactions.

• We will dedicate our time and resources to expanding greater diversity within our board and leadership positions.

• We commit to leading with respect and tolerance and we encourage all employees and volunteers to express this in their work within our organization.

Coded by Kids agrees to abide by the following action items to promote diversity, inclusion, and equity in our work:

1. We will create new learning opportunities and formal, transparent policies as we strive for cultural competency throughout our organization.

2. We will strive to conduct or identify research related to equity so that we can make progress in the area of diversity, inclusion, and equity and we’ll share our findings publicly on our website.

3. We will take action to improve diversity, inclusion, and equity in our board and leadership positions, committing to at least 80% board diversity at all times.

4. We will identify resources for our underrepresented constituents by networking with other organizations that are also committed to efforts for diversity, inclusion, and equity.

5. We will develop internal resources that demonstrate our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity and present them to our members and members of our community.

6. We will develop a system to create awareness and address biases during our recruiting, hiring, and evaluating processes.

7. We will train our personnel to be responsible for orienting, onboarding, and training our staff and volunteers on equitable practices.

8. We will be transparent about the salary range for public job descriptions.

9. We will advocate for public and private policies in the public sector that promote diversity, inclusion, and equity and we will challenge systems and policies that describe inequity, disparity, and oppression.

Coded by Kids operates using a direct-to-beneficiary model, where high-quality technology education/ instruction is delivered directly to young people who are underrepresented in the tech industry, including Black/ African American, Hispanic/ Latinx, LGBTQ+ people, and women.  Through our programming, including CBK Classroom, we bridge the learning gap in technology and innovation education, topics that are not currently addressed in most local schools’ curricula.  CBK works with public and charter schools as well as community organizations, utilizing their facilities to deliver our programs.  Students are referred to our programs by these school systems and community organizations, as well as through our own advertising channels.  

In the future, we will look to maximize our virtual model and programming to scale our impact, therefore, we will hire additional staff, which is our biggest expenditure area.  We will need to expand our team of Instructors as well as our Development staff to continue identifying new partnership opportunities.  Our expenses are covered by a combination of revenue sources including: corporate sponsorships; contracts with the schools and community organizations we work with as a direct service provider; corporate, government, and foundation grants; and individual donations.  Through our structure of making a long-term commitment to students, CBK’s programs prepare youth to become startup founders and future leaders in tech and innovation, creating pathways to economic and social mobility.  

Coded by Kids funds all of its programs and operations from a variety of sources including grants, corporate sponsorships, individual donations, government contracts, and fee-for-service programming.  CBK staff and board continue to identify diverse, long-term funding partnerships to sustain and grow its programs.

We are investing in capacity-building steps that will improve our ability to raise money.  We understand that in order to meet our expanded organizational goals we will have to increase our capacity for fundraising by building staff infrastructure and investing in the development of our personnel, systems, and structures.  We are pursuing long-term relationships and multi-year commitments in our fundraising efforts and developing programs that build relationships as the cornerstone of fundraising effectiveness.  Alongside this, we are building strategic partnerships with schools, government agencies, companies, and other community organizations that will help to increase awareness and visibility, increase the services CBK can offer, expand our client base, and bring in new revenue.

Beyond financial sustainability, CBK ensures programmatic sustainability through engagement and strong partnerships.  The majority of CBK programs are implemented through relationships with program partners such as school districts and community-based organizations that serve the neighborhoods we work in.  The sustainability/ long-term growth potential of our programming is contingent upon the relationships that we form with our partners, their communities, and the youth that they serve.  We honor these relationships by providing our partners with increasingly robust, in-depth, and engaging programming, and carefully cultivating new partnerships with mission-aligned partners. 

During its eight-year tenure, CBK’s plan to achieve financial sustainability has been successful, raising enough money through diversified revenue streams to cover expenses and expand year over year.  

In 2021, corporate contributions (i.e. sponsorships) exceeded $500,000 and individual/ small business contributions grew to over $100,000.  CBK’s largest corporate, government, and foundation grants in 2021 and 2022 are as follows: City of Philadelphia Department of Commerce $300,000; Comcast NBCUniversal $250,000; Red Nose Day at Comic Relief Inc. $250,000; Springpoint Foundation $250,000; and Lenfest Foundation $200,000.  In addition to these large grant contributions, CBK receives grants from over two dozen funders. 

Our two major earned income sources, totaling close to $200,000 per year, are through CBK Classroom partners who host our programming at their sites and companies who pay for Draft Studios web-development services.  In order to accommodate programming and services in our targeted communities, the fee-for-service structure does not cover all of CBK’s associated costs.  To bolster our earned income, we are considering expanding our virtual programming, CBK Academy, to include revenue-generating programming.