When you first meet Sonali, you might be surprised that at only 17 years old, she’s already volunteered for several Citizen Schools Game Coding apprenticeships and started her own “chapter” of volunteers at Saratoga High School. Sonali has a love for Computer Science and wanted to find ways to give back to the larger community. In her research, she found Citizen Schools, which gave her an outlet for sharing her passion for coding, working with middle-school students of diverse backgrounds, and partnering with passionate STEM professionals to student teach classes.

The secret to her success with students? Her youth is actually a part of what makes it easy for her to connect with them since she’s only a few years older. “I wanted to make sure they were comfortable in learning,” Sonali said. She takes the time to understand their perspective and learn about them as people.  At the same time, the differences between Sonali and her students, like their neighborhoods, are also what teachers like Sonali and other student volunteers from Saratoga learn from. “They’re kids and they face pretty big challenges. I wanted to make sure they could explore the opportunities we have,” explained Sonali.

Sonali recalled how in her coding classes, there’s often a disproportionate number of boys compared to girls, which can sometimes be intimidating for the girls. It may also contribute to their silence in the room. A student in one class, Monica, was clearly not motivated and was simply doing what she was told to do. Once Monica realized that coding was behind the characters in the video games she enjoyed playing, she made the connection to the class work. “You should be coding things for yourself rather than for someone else. She’s not coding for class, she’s coding what she’s genuinely interested in.” By the end of the project, Monica wanted to take the class again and learn more.

For Sonali, what also keeps bringing her back is the passion of the Citizen School Teachers, working with dedicated adults who volunteer their time and expertise to get students excited about coding. She also has a new-found respect for teachers and the hard work and patience they bring to their classes. Sonali has personally seen new interests piqued about future careers in the short time a student participates in an apprenticeship. When she thinks about the middle-school students she works with, she says, “I’m so excited to see what kind of person you’re going to be in 10 years!”