Code Nation
No Innovation Without Representation
Code Nation brings tech leaders, high school educators, and students together to help increase access and equity in the fields of computer science and technology. The organization engages experienced technologists to teach high school students how to code and succeed professionally in the fast-growing tech sector. Athletics created a new name, strategic platform, story, and visual system for Code Nation to express the organization’s distinct approach and national vision, making sure it resonates amongst technologists and teenagers alike.
Our Role:
Art Direction
Brand Identity, Brand Writing
Motion Graphics
Naming
Physical Environments and Exhibitions, Research and Strategy
Collaborators:
Matt Blease
System failure
Though many young people aspire to be technologists, very few of them have access to the education required to compete. In fact, only 19% of high school students can enroll in computer science classes through their institution. Of these students, 3% are black, 6% are latino, and 18% are female. Paradoxically, many of the high schools that don’t offer tech courses exist in urban areas, where job opportunities in the tech sector are exploding, with hundreds of thousands of unfilled tech jobs existing at this very moment. This is the system which Code Nation (previously known as ScriptEd) sought to unravel.
Coding a new national movement
Athletics developed ScriptEd’s new name—Code Nation—and built a visual identity around this anthemic vocabulary. Designing a digital flag to represent the “Code Nation,” we created a rallying cry around the idea that by empowering the next generation of tech leaders, we all reach higher ground. The color palette is customizable by locale, accommodating expansion into different cities and states, thereby giving each community its own unique flag. A series of illustrations by artist Matt Blease keeps things light, riffing on tech industry issues with a sense of humor.
“The re-brand is making a huge difference. An example of the power of the new name, is that now when I mention my involvement with Code Nation, almost everybody says, 'Oh I've heard of that organization. They do great work.'”
Sarah Min, Board of Directors, Code Nation
