Crack the Code (formerly known as Creative Coding+ or CC+) is an open-membership hub dedicated to helping Penn students 1.) explore programming and design in a supportive environment and 2.) discuss historical barriers to computer science education. Through a series of interactive technical workshops, student-led discussions, and community-based events, we hope to break the illusion of there being a singular archetypal computer science student — anyone, of any background, can get involved in CS.

Education

We value peer-to-peer education. Every few weeks, we host student-led workshops in standard web development skills (such as Git, Figma, HTML/CSS, JavaScript, React.js, etc.). Our goal is to make these technologies accessible and approachable to those with a desire to learn.

Community

One of our goals as a student organization is to bring together students who have felt marginalized in computer science. Every 2 months, we facilitate student-led, open-forum discussions called “What’s Wrong with CIS?” centering personal experiences with CS education at Penn.

We also connect with initiatives outside our student population that relate to our mission, including author events, joint discussions with CS faculty, and funded day trips to computer-related workshops in Philly (think hardware, hacking, and other cool things).