We believe quality education is the key to enabling individuals to escape poverty. Our vision is to help create a future where all children in Austin, Texas who live in poverty, have a chance to succeed in school and in life. Austin Kids Can! was established by individuals with experience in afterschool programs for Austin's lower-income youth and who saw a need for Computer Science (CS) education to begin for these children in elementary school. This will level the playing field, enabling all students to gain technology-related skills and competencies along with an interest in these subjects. Students will then be more likely to succeed in advanced CS classes and ultimately pursue a degree/career in the exponentially growing CS field. After piloting our Coding & CS classes, we came to believe that CS learning opportunities will be enhanced by empowering students with Social Emotional Learning (SEL) competencies at the same time. As we teach our children the future of technology, it is just as important that we teach them to be good citizens. We believe it is critical to develop lifelong skills at an early age when you begin to make sense of the world around you and where you fit in. Austin Kids Can! is committed to helping at-risk children of Austin grow and achieve success in the 21st century.