Wichita State University's College of Engineering is partnering with STEMpact2020 to launch a free new outreach program designed to identify and engage gifted, young coders in a program that allows them to build their skills by working side-by-side with professional software developers, web developers and computer scientists.

Wichita State will host its second Coder Monthly Meetup from 2-5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 20, at the National Center for Aviation Technology, Room M165 (4004 N. Webb Road). During the three-hour session, mentors will work with the youth to tackle a coding problem, with kids and mentors dividing into four groups to code in four different languages -- Java, Python, C# and JavaScript. (Students must already be familiar with at least one of the languages to participate in the meetups.) Sessions also include formal presentations by mentors, who talk about their jobs and the educational and career paths they took to get there, and informal time for mentors and youth to get to know one another.

“We’re excited to launch this innovative new outreach program with so much volunteer support from industry professionals,” said John Watkins, chairman of the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department. “We know there is a huge unmet workforce demand for people with coding skills, and we as a university are looking at a number of strategies to address this challenge.”

Growth in employment

In Kansas, jobs for computer coders and software developers already exceed the number of college graduates with computer science degrees by a factor of 10:1, according to www.code.org, a nonprofit working to increase access to computer science education nationwide.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates computer science-related fields to be among the fastest growing professions with a 22 percent growth rate between 2012 and 2022. With median pay ranging from $30 an hour for web developers, $35 an hour for computer programmers and $45 for software developers, these are lucrative jobs that offer promising futures.

Nearly 20 coding professionals are volunteering as mentors, coming from companies that include Koch Industries, NetApp, Wolters Kluwer, AgVantis, Cargill and OpenGovFoundation.org, as well as Wichita Public Schools and Wichita State University. Mentors were recruited by STEMpact2020, a STEM mentoring program sponsored by the College of Engineering.

“Our mentors are highly motivated,” said Polly Basore, who is coordinating the program for the College of Engineering. “They all have different stories about how they got into coding professionally. Some describe a lonely experience of growing up, loving coding and teaching themselves, but without anyone to go to for help or to share their interest. Others say they stumbled into coding when their jobs suddenly required it, discovering they loved doing it but wished they had learned earlier.”

The first event held in January drew 18 students from a dozen area middle and high schools. The program hopes to grow to 50 participants. For more information or to register a child for the March 26 meetup, go to www.wichita.edu/hackathon.