Jason Gibson

Jason knows that children deserve every chance to succeed — access that transcends zip code and opportunities that jump economic hurdles. Growing up in the Queensbridge Houses, he’s faced those hurdles, and now, as the father of a teenager, he also understands the constraints that can trip up working parents. Jason launched Hood Code to address some of these issues and grounded the program in his own NYCHA community, offering free coding classes to learners ages 8–15. Over the program’s 13 weeks, Hood Code kids learn creative problem solving, coding basics, and computer competency. Hood Code acts as both an educational opportunity for young people and a set of extra hands for working parents, bringing a spark to NYCHA community centers in the form of essential 21st century skills.