Coding and tech is a hot topic for educators and parents alike. But why is it so important? EdTech MixTape by CoderZ talks to someone on the frontlines.
Jay Jay Patton learned to code when she was just 10 years old. At 12, she created her first app for her dad's nonprofit, the Photo Patch Foundation. Now, at 16, she's a high school junior who helps run the foundation and a coding academy. "I really enjoy it because it's not what a normal 16-year-old would be doing. And I think it's just getting me prepared for even bigger things in life."
As the Junior Director of the Photo Patch Foundation, though, Jay Jay is already doing big things. Her father, Antoine, started the nonprofit website when he was in prison and struggling to keep in contact with Jay Jay and other family members. For the seven and a half years her dad was away, Jay Jay's mom was focused on keeping food on the table, which didn't always leave extra money for stamps and envelopes to write letters. "Phone calls and regular visits were just as hard and expensive," Jay Jay explained. Upon coming home, Antoine and Jay Jay saw the opportunity to expand the foundation together and create a free app to help children stay connected with their incarcerated parents. Now, four years later, she just launched the second version of the Photo Patch app, which allows kids to upload photos and letters for their parents with even more ease. "It makes the overall experience easier and it makes it even more convenient for these children to be able to communicate with their parents," she said.
Jay Jay's success with coding and creating the Photo Patch app led her to jump at the opportunity to join her father with his next project, an online coding school called Unlock Academy. Jay Jay became the youth leader of the organization in 2018 and immediately began teaching young people the skills they need to succeed in an increasingly tech-focused world. "A lot of people who look like us want to get into tech, but don't have the resources," Jay Jay explained. "So, our goal is to help everybody enter the tech space in an easy, convenient, and affordable way." Jay Jay's dad offered to help her teach the youth classes, but she refused to let him. "I was very adamant about doing it on my own," she said.
Jay Jay's personal experiences have inspired her to pursue a career in tech, and now, she wants to help others do the same. She has dealt with the barriers that come with having a parent in prison, and she knows what it’s like to enter the world of STEM — a white male-dominated field — as a young woman of color. "Having that firsthand experience, it just touches my heart," she said. Now, Jay Jay wants to create opportunities for others by taking what she's learned and creating solutions for those who come after her. She's so determined, that in a new documentary for HP's Generation Impact series, Jay Jay said her goal is to get 10,000 women of color into the tech world on her own.
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