Fairfield County Teens Look To Educate Others In Computer Science

DARIEN, CT — With technology seemingly ingrained in every aspect of life, the need for computer literacy has never been higher. Some local teenagers hope to fulfill that need through Fairfield Programing Association (FPA), a student-run nonprofit that aims to teach computer science to underserved students here in the United States and abroad.

FPA was founded two years ago after Greens Farms Academy student and lifelong Darien resident Neil Chaudhari, and now-GFA alum Will McGonagle, of Bridgeport, noticed computer science competitions had lost their luster.

"During the pandemic, the [competitions] were all online. We didn't feel they were as fun and as mentally challenging as they were before the pandemic. We really wanted to reinvigorate the computer science community in our area," Chaudhari said.

Chaudhari and McGonagle decided to create their own competition and they began to reach out to other schools for participants. But due to staffing shortages, it was difficult to get in touch with computer science teachers because some computer science departments had shuttered.

"Will and I decided we should do something about it," said Chaudhari, and FPA was born.

There are now about 20 volunteers from schools like GFA, Darien High School, St. Luke's in New Canaan, Rye Country Day School in Westchester, and even from around the world, who hold online and in-person computer science classes for underserved students at shcools, libraries and Boys & Girls Clubs. The first classes were held at a school in Bridgeport.

FPA also has what's called a "Charter Program" in which a computer science club can be established at one school, like GFA, and those students can then go educate others at a different school.

The hope is that in the next year, FPA can establish about 12-14 other charters at schools around the country, including in California, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, Chaudhari said. Ultimatley, thousands of charters can be created across the country.

"The charter program is a key part of our plan to interconnect the computer science community, as well as bring computer science education to every corner of the U.S.," Chief Operating Officer of FPA Chris Gemignani said.

Chaudhari, 16, is a rising senior at GFA. He recalled a computer science class he took in the summer leading into eighth grade. He was hooked.

"Being able to be literate with computers is extremely important, even if you are a student who's not STEM-inclined," Chaudhari said, noting that computer coding can teach valuable problem-solving skills.

"Being able to have that computer science curriculum open to you is really crucial to the development of any student. On top of that, being able to be familiar with computers opens up a wonderful door of possibilities and allows you to explore something you might just grow a passion for," Chaudhari said.

FPA just recently expanded abroad with classes in India, and is about to partner with Unity Technology, a game development software company, and Preponderous Software, an open-source game development team.

Through the partnership, FPA will provide community feedback and work on a free game that's being developed. FPA will also publish educational tutorials on how to create games on your own.

While Chaudhari is entering his final year of high school, and McGonagle will be a freshman at Georgetown University this fall, the hope is for FPA to continue to expand.

Chaudhari explained a desire to develop something called the FPA Learning Platform, which will be a free and open-source learning platform that enables anyone to learn computer-related ideas.

"Everyday our team works tirelessly to give the best computer science education to as many people as possible," Gemignani added.

For Chaudhari, seeing students grasp computer science and learn new things makes it all worth it.

"The best part about this is creating that connection with your students. Being able to kneel down next to them and walk them through concepts and be able to hold their hand as they learn new concepts, and their eyes light up," Chaudhari said. "It's gratifying."

FPA is currently looking for new volunteers. Anyone interested can email Neil Chaudhari at chaudharin@fairfieldprogramming.org.

To support the nonprofit and its mission, click here for more on how to donate to FPA.