Today (at the time of this writing) it is December 2, 2017, the date of our Future’s Fund Student Showcase. I must say, seeing these young people on stage articulating their vision and the things that they’ve learned in their time with Future’s Fund is amazing and overwhelming. I’ve never taught students before joining the FF Instructor team. Seeing MY students that I’ve spent several saturdays instructing standing tall and speaking with confidence was unbelievable. That feeling is worth more than money. To help the youth, to help the community and to have a hand in crafting the future generations is huge to me.

This Fall 2017 semester was my 2nd semester working with Futures Fund. The experience has been extremely rewarding, although not without its frustrations. The main frustration being getting the kids to believe in themselves enough they they are confident they can do the work. Frontend web development (HTML/CSS/Javascript) isn’t the most fun topic to be taught. It can feel a lot like learning math. There are variables and functions in coding just like in algebra and that can cause kids to sort of space out. This is relatively a very small issue and it provides me as an instructor the opportunity to be creative and think of new ways to keep student engaged.

Also, I would be remiss if I did not speak on the incredibly talented staff and other instructors I get to work alongside. These are some of Baton Rouge’s most talented developers. I enjoy being able to work in an environment where I can learn from everyone around me. I learn from both my peers as well as the student’s that I am instructing.

I would like to wrap this short blog up by saying the Walls Project/Future’s Fund is taking all the necessary steps to change this city for the better and this is just the beginning. As the program grows so will their positive influence. I am thankful for the opportunity to be apart of such a program that is so innovative and forward thinking.

Check out the Futures Fund here.