Newark Students Learn the 'Code' for Future Success

With computers already dominating the workplace, with a presence poised to grow even more in the coming decades, learning to program the machines is and will continue to be absolutely vital. So vital, in fact, that there’s already a shortage of programmers.

The “Hour of Code” is designed to change that.

Utilizing a free, online tutorial, students Tuesday at Malcolm X. Shabazz, as well as at 14 other city schools and hundreds more across the country, took to their laptops and desktops to receive instruction in the quintessential 21st century skill.

Volunteers from Newark’s tech sector are visiting classrooms throughout the city during the two-day event to introduce students to the coding language behind web sites.

“The Hour of Code is a terrific program that helps students discover the opportunities in web development at a young age,” said Mayor Luis Quintana. “This is one of the best ways to help the children of Newark learn the skills that will prepare them for a job in the 21st century economy.  We are committed to providing more opportunities like this for our youth so Newark can remain a nationally and internationally competitive city.”

Volunteers from Newark and the surrounding communities were encouraged to participate in Hour of Code through a sign-up page on the City of Newark webpage and the active promotion of tech meet-up groups like Brick City Tech, Madison Tech, and Innovation Technology. The Newark Public Schools also sponsored the event. 

“My experience with Newark’s youth is that they are smart and inspired to excel, but there aren't enough people helping open doors for them,” said Matt Martone, founder and CEO of ClixSocial, a tech company on Halsey Street. “Knowing how to code helped me get into college, land my first job and start a company here in Newark. When I learned through Twitter that the city was participating in Hour of Code, I immediately wanted to volunteer because teaching these students to code was a way to help open a door.”

Organized by the city and Brick City Development Corp., in collaboration with Newark Public Schools, Hour of Code is part of Computer Science Education Week.(#HourofCode)