Code Nation

Four out of five students who pursue tech careers decide to do so in high school, but young people growing up in low-income circumstances have less access to computer science courses, internship opportunities, and role models that launch careers in tech.

With a volunteer teaching corps of hundreds of professional web and software developers, Code Nation mobilizes the tech community to provide tuition-free coding courses and work-based learning programs to students who attend under-resourced schools.

Challenge

Gaps in access to tech education perpetuate inequity and leave tremendous potential untapped.

$46,435

A majority of students in Code Nation partner schools grow up in households with income less than $46,435 per year for a family of four.

8% of students who attend under-resourced high schools earn a degree in a STEM-related field within 6 years of graduation.

15%

Less than 15% of the tech workforce identifies as Black or Latinx.

26%

Less than 26% of the tech workforce identifies as female.

Our Impact

Code Nation programs promote career readiness, socioeconomic mobility, and workplace diversity.

$84,580

Code Nation prepares students for in-demand computing and technology jobs, where the average salary is $84,580 per year.

67%

67% of our reported alumni who completed two or more years of Code Nation programs are currently majoring or employed in a STEM-related field.

77%

77% of Code Nation students identify as Black or Latinx.

43%

43% of Code Nation students identify as female.

Shout Outs

See who else supports our mission

/ 4

Lam Thuy Vo

Senior Reporter at Buzzfeed

"Nothing makes me happier than seeing a bunch of kids geek out over code and find ways to make their projects happen. I can't wait for Code Nation alumni to make their ways into tech and take over the industry. Really love these students."

Joe Tessler

Software Engineer at Google

"Code Nation gives both students and volunteers an opportunity to try new things, elevate themselves, and join a supportive, inclusive network. I'm proud to take part in influencing the next generation of tech workers."

Melissa Huang

JavaScript Engineer at Care/of

"This past summer we had the pleasure of hosting an intern. In five short weeks, our intern, Momina, learned React and built out a page for our mobile web users. It was incredible to watch her grow as an engineer and contribute to our team."

Joey Mejias

Android Developer

"Programs like Code Nation are the reason I have a career. I'm paying it forward while teaching the next wave of top talent in tech."

See who else supports our mission

You In?

Get Involved

Code Nation programs are made possible by the volunteers, schools, company partners, and supporters who give time, money, and resources to create opportunities for our students. Learn more about the many ways you can support our work.

Volunteer

Our courses are taught by professional web and software developers on a volunteer basis. Sign up to become a volunteer teacher and inspire the next generation of technologists.

Learn more

Donate

Code Nation relies on charitable donations to run our programs for hundreds of students in NYC, Chicago, and the Bay Area. Learn about all the ways you can support our work.

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Company Partners

We partner with companies to offer students work-based learning experiences that promote career readiness. Explore how your company can make an impact with our community.

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School Partners

We partner with schools where at least 75% of students qualify for free or reduced price lunch. Find out how you can bring Code Nation programs to your school.

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Give Now

Announcements

July 1st, 2020

Code Nation NYC Launches Spring Tech Academy, An Innovative Virtual Program

Since its inception in 2012, Code Nation has built bridges between students from under- resourced high schools and careers in the tech industry. Historically, we have accomplished this by fostering relationships between students and software engineers, organizing workplace experiences at…

June 2nd, 2020

Black Lives Matter

We Are Living Through Historical Change. The world is in the midst of historic, unprecedented change. The global community has suffered through a sweeping pandemic, months of a worldwide quarantine, a crippled international economy, massive job losses, and the hunt…

May 21st, 2020

Code Nation’s First Ever Virtual Hackathon

Each year, excitement builds within the Code Nation community for our annual marquee events: regional hackathons. Traditionally, our students and volunteers gather in the hundreds to embark upon a day of coding and (friendly!) competition with hopes of snagging the…

June 19th, 2020

Hackathon 2020: #CodeTheMovement

Each year, Code Nation celebrates the newest cohort of coders at annual city-wide Hackathons. Across our regions, students, volunteers, and community members come together for a full day of collaboration and coding around a surprise theme revealed day-of. Teams spend…

March 25th, 2020

Code Nation’s Response to COVID-19 – Fostering A Virtual Learning Community

Amidst the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis and global pandemic, Code Nation’s top priority is ensuring the health and safety of our students, staff, volunteers, and extended community of supporters. As public health crises like this one tend to disproportionately affect the…

February 14th, 2020

Cognizant U.S. Foundation Announces $1M Grant to Code Nation

Code Nation’s impact is built on support from our community – they power every facet of our programming. From the volunteers who lead our programs, to the companies that open their doors for field trips, to the school-leaders who welcome…

February 11th, 2019

A New Leader for Code Nation

Our co-founder Maurya Couvares has an announcement for Code Nation’s friends, volunteers, and staff: Today, I am stepping down as the CEO of Code Nation. Seven years can feel like a lifetime and a blink of an eye at the…

February 7th, 2019

NYC Hackathon 2019

We are counting down the seconds until our Hackathon for New York City students and volunteers on Saturday, March 23rd! Our all-day Hackathons are the biggest and best opportunity for our students to show off the skills they have been…

February 5th, 2019

Major Grant from Strada Education Network

As a not-for-profit organization, Code Nation is fueled by the philanthropic support of our community members, corporate partners, and private foundations. Today, we are thrilled to officially welcome Strada Education Network as our newest supporter. Strada has awarded Code Nation…

February 1st, 2019

Bay Area Hackathon 2019

Our all-day Hackathon for students and volunteers in the Bay Area is just a few weeks away! At our Hackathons, students practice their skills, deepen relationships with peers and volunteers, and work on awesome projects. Students say it’s the best…

December 5th, 2018

What do you hear in our annual report?

The quotes from our 2017-18 annual report leap off the page! Code Nation’s most successful year yet is best described through the voices of our students, alumni, and volunteers. After all, they comprise the community that makes our work worthwhile. …

November 13th, 2018

Manish will build you a Slack bot if you donate $5,000

Longtime Code Nation volunteer Manish is, for the second year in a row, doing something incredibly awesome and generous to support our students. Below is his post. I’ll write a Slack bot for you if you donate $5000 to a…

October 31st, 2018

We changed our name! ScriptEd is now Code Nation

Why change? In 2012, our founders noticed that many schools weren’t offering coding classes and students weren’t getting exposure to tech careers. So they started a class in a high school in New York City and enlisted a few volunteers…