Brenton Strine has over 20 years of experience writing code, most of that building enterprise websites for many millions of users at companies like NASA, Amazon, and Mailchimp. He has been deeply involved with non-traditional software engineering education, as a learner, a teacher, a creator, and an innovator.
Brenton Strine
Refcode Founder, Director
Brenton Strine knows firsthand the life-transforming power of a career in software engineering. He never studied computer science in school or took any programming classes, yet throughout high school and college he taught himself how to build websites in his spare time. He found, after graduating college, that his Philosophy and English degrees weren't very employable, but that his idle hobby perfectly qualified him to become a Web Developer.
He founded Refcode in 2017 after moving to Atlanta and learning about the population of refugees who had been resettled in Clarkston from all over the world. People who were displaced from their homes and left behind distinguished backgrounds, education, and careers, and are hungry and motivated to start fresh and move beyond the menial work at the chicken factory.
Brenton is passionate about teaching and believes that foundational skills in communication, creativity, and problem solving are far more important to long-term success than understanding programming syntax or the latest programming trend.
Learn more about Brenton’s story in this podcast interview by The Digital Footprint.
Learn more about the founding of Refcode on the Our Team page.
Redefining the Refugee Story with Brenton Strine
Richard Simms, co-founder of Tyrannosaurus Tech and host of The Digital Footprint podcast interviews Brenton.