Student Earns Teen Character Award

Sophomore Kasim Khapra earned a Teen Character Award from the McLean Citizens Association for his contributions to the community. Khapra was one of four area students honored during McLean Day this past Saturday.

Khapra was recognized for founding MyPy Coding, which seeks to remove barriers to accessing computer science education. He started it during the COVID-19 pandemic when a family friend asked him to tutor her fourth grader on coding through Zoom. He expanded his tutoring to multiple students and recruited friends who could tutor. Now, the nonprofit provides free online one-on-one coding lessons to students in second to eighth grades. Students who were taught in the program pay it forward by becoming tutors to teach younger students. According to the citizens association, the nonprofit is geared toward underprivileged students in Northern Virginia, DC, and beyond and has a curriculum seeking to make coding approachable and fun.