


Priya: Code x Learning

2016, 2017
NYC
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{
Meet
Priya K.
]
Priya’s journey with Kode With Klossy began in 2016, the summer after her junior year of high school, when she attended one of the earliest KWK camps in New York. It was her first introduction to coding, and it completely changed the trajectory of her life. What stood out most wasn’t just learning code for the first time—it was the uniquely uplifting and encouraging learning environment. Surrounded by supportive peers and instructors, Priya felt empowered to take on difficult challenges and to reimagine what a learning space could feel like. She returned the following summer for a second camp in Chicago and later became an instructor assistant, eager to help cultivate the same kind of environment that had such a powerful impact on her. Today, Priya is a high school computer science teacher in Washington Heights, where she brings that same spirit of curiosity, encouragement, and community into her own classroom. Though her academic path began in international relations, it was her consistent love of working with students—through tutoring, mentoring, and summer camps—that ultimately led her to education. Inspired by the teachers she met through KWK, she joined Teach for America and found joy in creating learning spaces where students feel safe, seen, and challenged. Now, she’s building a brand-new computer science program at her school from the ground up, leaning heavily on her KWK experience for both curriculum ideas and classroom culture, from rubber duck debugging to creative coding prompts. Priya is especially passionate about helping students find personal meaning in code. Her classes include open-ended projects—like DJ booths and robot pathing exercises—that allow students to integrate their interests, from anime to music, into the technical work. She encourages them to approach coding as a new language and as a different way of thinking that expands their problem-solving skills, even if they don’t plan to pursue it after high school. To her, the most powerful intersection of tech is with education—not just because it prepares students for the future, but because it teaches them how the tools they use every day actually work. Through her teaching, Priya continues to pass on the transformative energy of Kode With Klossy, shaping a new generation of confident, creative coders.

Empowering young women and gender expansive youth.