The People Behind the Project
KINDEYA DEBESU
Kindeya grew up in a village in Ethiopia, an experience that has shaped how he thinks about technology, access and the digital divide. As a high school student, he helped develop curriculum for a digital library that gave students in Ethiopian schools access to additional learning resources through local networks.
Now studying computer science at MIT, he is particularly interested in using technology to create practical pathways that help people move from curiosity to meaningful participation and creation. That combination of technical interest and personal experience brought an important systems perspective to the project.
BEAU AMBROISE
Beau came to MIT from Newark, New Jersey, where his own educational experiences shaped a lasting interest in educational equity. Before college, he spent several years tutoring high school students in math and physics and came to appreciate how much a good teacher can influence a student's relationship with learning.
That interest continues to shape how Beau thinks about his future. He has described teaching computer science or mathematics in a low-income community as part of his longer-term aspirations, which brought an especially useful perspective to a project centered on how beginning students experience computer science.
MIRANDA LI
Miranda arrived at MIT with relatively little programming experience and quickly developed a passion for building with technology. Her interest in access to education also predates college, including funding a music scholarship in high school to help other students pursue opportunities she knew were not equally available to everyone.
At MIT, she is studying computer science and mathematics, assists students in an introductory Python course and has taught algorithmic problem-solving. Her combination of technical ability, teaching experience and attention to organization and quality became particularly valuable as the team thought about how students and educators might actually use what they were building.