Episode 07 with Shawn Drost

Shawn Drost is the co-founder of Hack Reactor, the leader in immersive education for computer programming, where he manages the Remote Beta program and the Last Mile's Code.7370 curriculum at San Quentin State Prison. Prior to Hack Reactor, Shawn was a software engineer, most recently at OkCupid, and a founder of several non-profit and for-profit initiatives. In this episode, Shawn describes the Rapid Iteration Teaching method that Hack Reactor uses and explains how “asking for thumbs” can be a very effective teaching model. He says Hack Reactor is data driven in everything they do instructionally, and they model a lot of their processes from the real world. Shawn shares what he has recently learned about homelessness, and learn why he has been really encouraged to find that you really can successfully affect change in giant societal machines. Shawn is most proud of the Code 7370 program, which is the first “learn to code” program inside an American prison. Hear Shawn announce a new scholarship opportunity, and learn about one of his earliest teaching experiences.