About Us
We are working to improve K-12 Computer Science education.
What We Seek
When Doves Code is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that was formed in 2017 out of a desire to improve the equity, effectiveness, and quality of computer science education for those we feel need it most:
- K-12 Educators (and School Districts)
- Parents
- Students falling into 1 or more Minority/Underrepresented/Disadvantaged Groups (girls, African-Americans, Latinos, and low-income)
Our top priority for the immediate future is to help produce more Computer Science (CS) educators. We believe that the other priorities are more achievable if we start with providing teachers with various Professional Development opportunities to help them with crafting and executing CS curriculum.
Why We Care
We feel strongly that our schools and parents could use the help of current computer science professionals to help improve K-12 CS education offerings.
- Many U.S. school systems still have not adopted a statewide plan for improving K-12 computer science education. Thanks to the efforts and advocacy of fellow like-minded organizations, we can now see the stats (thanks code.org!) on how this is beginning to improve. There’s still work to be done though!
- Even with the standards and curriculum available, our schools do not have enough Computer Science educators. We need more CS educators to prepare our next generation of Computer Science professionals.
- We still have work to do to improve the number of girls and minorities remaining in the Computer Science pipeline. We believe the optimal time to attack this problem is in the middle school grades.
Impact & Accomplishments

Shonna Smith
About Our Founder
Shonna Smith became interested in computer science while in her teens and began her journey as a computer programmer while attending Cass Technical High School in Detroit, Michigan. She went on to earn a Computer & Information Science B.S. degree from Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia. Her career as an IT Consultant began immediately after college while working with IBM. She eventually joined a small Fairfax, VA-based tech startup (Blue Collar Objects) where her expertise as an Enterprise Java Software Architect/Developer began to blossom and eventually lead to a fascination with “all things Agile”. Ms. Smith now runs an independent tech consultancy, coderighter, that focuses on Agile Coaching/Training/Consulting plus custom software solutions to help small business owners create websites and apps for their business. She is also the owner of Kid Care Anywhere (an event child care company) and a LinkedIn Course Author/Instructor teaching Enterprise Java Development courses (particularly Spring Framework development). Ms. Smith credits her parents (both teachers) for her love of teaching and her own natural tech curiosity for her love of computer science.