Jacob Shaul is thankful to have learned how to code in middle school and wants to give the same opportunity to others.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA — School has let out for the day, but in one San Francisco classroom, over a dozen middle school students are actively engaged in learning how to code. They’re taking part in a free program called “Mode to Code,” and their teachers are high school volunteers.
“A big part of why we’re different from other after-school coding classes is that we’re entirely a high school-run program,” said Jacob Shaul, founder of Mode to Code. “The idea is to give ambitious high schoolers around the city the opportunity to give back and also to connect with each other.”
Shaul, who’s currently a junior at San Francisco University High School, came up with the idea for Mode to Code in the summer of 2024. His program, which provides technology and software education to youth and under-resourced communities, was inspired by his own learning about how to code in an after-school class during his middle school days.
“I really enjoyed it,” said Shaul. “We all came together, about 15 kids, and he [the teacher] taught us and worked with us one-on-one. I was very happy to be a part of it, and it started my coding journey.”
Shaul continued learning about coding throughout middle school and high school, while also recognizing that he wanted to help others in the same way that his teacher had supported him.
“I realized how much coding had given me, and how much this after-school class had given me, and I was inspired to do a similar thing,” he said. “I wanted other middle schoolers to have the same opportunity that I had.”
Shaul initially brought Mode to Code to after-school programs at Everett Middle School and Live Oak School. Finding that students were receptive to it, he expanded from there to Presidio Middle School, Everett Middle School, Presidio Hill School, Chinese American International School and other schools.
“A bunch of schools didn’t already have an after-school program dedicated to coding, and so I brought it to them in that way,” he said. “I wasn’t sure if there were middle schools around San Francisco that had that same opportunity that I did in private school, so I did a little research, and I was very surprised to see that there was an extreme paucity of coding education, computer science education and technology education in general.”
Shaul is invested in making sure students who are underprivileged or underrepresented have access to Mode to Code classes, which are free of cost.
“Our goal is to always be free for all the students,” he said. “So that means that since we don’t really have any money and aren’t making it from anywhere, these are all high school volunteers.”
A typical class has anywhere from five to 25 students in attendance, with 10 to 15 as the average. In addition to Shaul, there are 15 or so other high school volunteers who contribute their time and coding knowledge.
Mode to Code also offers online classes for students across five continents in locations such as Botswana, Bolivia, India, Jamaica and Italy and has partnered with programs like Breakthrough Summerbridge and the nonprofit Young STEAMers to further students’ coding- and technology-related learning and skills.
“It’s really helping anyone that’s interested in learning more about it get the resources that they would want,” said Shaul.
That philosophy extends to all ages, including individuals in Bay Area senior centers, where Shaul and fellow volunteers offer in-person guidance on cybersecurity, internet basics and artificial intelligence like ChatGPT. They even offer seniors suggestions about websites and online offerings, such as Apple podcasts.
“That’s one that a lot of people have said they didn’t know about until I introduced it to them, and they were very happy,” he said about the podcasts. “We’re not really teaching them how to code – we’re teaching them the essential technology that they need.”
Shaul is currently preparing for San Francisco University High School’s first-ever hackathon, “UHS Hacks 2025,” on Saturday. He put the event together, including raising nearly $20,000 in funding for the event and its prizes.
“I realized that we didn’t actually have one at my high school, and I thought it would be a great opportunity,” he said.
The hackathon will bring together the Mode to Code community, including middle and high school students from throughout the Bay Area and seniors.
For Shaul, the positive response to the event – and Mode to Code participants’ feedback – motivate him to continue with his program and its aims.
“After a class that I taught, each student sent me an email saying how much they had enjoyed my class and how much they learned from it,” he shared. “That was really touching, and it reminded me that what I was doing was actually helping some people.”
UHS Hacks will take place at SF University High School, 3150 California St., from 9 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. The event schedule is available here.