Every child in Bulgaria can learn to code without having to go to an IT school or burden the family budget with expensive private lessons. This is possible thanks to CoderDojo’s free programming clubs and enthusiasts like Sabina Hristova who help children discover the opportunities that technology offers.
Sabina is one of the first volunteers at CoderDojo Bulgaria, the organization behind the free programming clubs for youngsters aged 7–17 in Bulgaria. She is a “captain,” or a person in charge of a Dojo. Sabina is cofounder of several Dojo clubs and is actively involved in the work of the CoderDojo network in Bulgaria. As the captain of a Dojo club, she is responsible for its overall functioning: she finds training sites, creates meeting schedules, develops learning content, attracts mentors, and, most importantly, selects the “ninjas,” as learners are called. Sabina’s organization and communication skills were recognized by VMware, one of the largest technology companies in Bulgaria, where she has worked in events, branding, and communication for several years.
“I am proud to have been able to involve many of my coworkers as volunteers, which ultimately led us to start a Dojo club at VMware’s headquarters. We have fun Sunday mornings teaching programming to about 30 children aged 6 to 12,” Sabina says.
Many of the learners Sabina works with took part in this year’s edition of Coolest Projects Sofia, a technology event for young entrepreneurs and innovators. The youngest participants were only 6 years old but, with their mentors’ help and encouragement, completed projects of their own and even won several first places in their category. And they haven’t even started school yet! “The high point for me was when the ninjas started making enthusiastic plans for their next projects and thanked us. This was when I realized what an impact our work has on the children and how much positive energy they give us,” Sabina says.
“I don’t keep track of the hours I spend on CoderDojo as this is one of my favorite hobbies. Many of my close friends have become involved in the Dojos over the last three years, and I have found new friends through the program as well. We are one team, one family,” she says.
The America for Bulgaria Foundation supports CoderDojo Bulgaria and its coding4all initiative, which provides technical training to Bulgarian teachers.
CoderDojo Bulgaria is part of the global CoderDojo family, a network of free programming clubs for kids spanning more than 60 countries. CoderDojo Bulgaria is run by the Digital National Alliance and a volunteer team.
