“I think that every child should learn the language of coding just like they learn English and Math and French,” said Amit Menipaz when asked about the importance of the Hour of Code event held at eBay Main Street earlier this month.
Menipaz has been the flagship champion for a program that’s become an annual event. Having attended the Grace Hopper Conference several years ago, he learned of the Hour of Code initiative and endeavored to bring it to eBay.
On November 28, eBay hosted 112 students from KIPP Heritage Academy – a charter school from within our San Jose community. Students took part in a hands-on coding experience geared to excite and inspire them about computer science. This event was in recognition of Computer Science Education Week from December 5th through the 11th.
In addition to spending an hour immersed in programming, the students enjoyed a campus tour, lunch buffet, eBay swag gifts, and had a Q&A session with four senior-level eBay employees: Amit Menipaz, VP, Structured Data; Kelly Vincent, VP, C2C Product and Engineering; Sanjeev Katariya, VP, Architecture; Helen Kim, VP, Global Operations.
Menipaz’ own introduction to programming began with a project in high school improving a car using solar technology – a project that included using software.
“Every language you learn brings you a whole new world of opportunities and understanding,” said Menipaz, “and since we here at eBay spend our time coding, it’s nice to help people – especially kids – learn that language.”
