Arizona State University Seniors Support Parents Challenge in Empowering Educational Choice for Low-Income Families

Through a year-long capstone project, ASU computer science majors enhanced the nonprofit's website to better serve families seeking educational choice.

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, UNITED STATES, May 8, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Parents Challenge, a Colorado Springs-based nonprofit dedicated to empowering parental choice in education, recently partnered with three Arizona State University (ASU) seniors to enhance their online presence and better support families across southern Colorado and beyond.

As part of a year-long, senior capstone project, computer science majors at ASU must complete a project with a company or nonprofit partner, receiving academic credit and a final grade for their work. For the 2024–2025 academic year, students Margaret Moran, Shivansh Shrivastava, and Kevin Johnston collaborated with Parents Challenge to upgrade and streamline key components of the organization's website.

The students focused on making meaningful edits to enhance functionality, streamline user experience, improve event management, and create a searchable, filterable resources section for families. Their technical work aims to make it easier for parents to find the educational resources and support they need.

"Our mission is centered on empowering parents to choose the best educational path for their families," said Deborah Hendrix, Executive Director of Parents Challenge. "Thanks to the talents and dedication of these ASU students, our website is now more intuitive, accessible, and helpful for the families we serve. Their contributions will have a lasting impact."

Parents Challenge introduces a unique, nonprofit model to educational choice. Parents Challenge is truly committed to parents deciding what educational route is best for their child by supporting students attending public schools, charter schools, homeschooling, or private schools. In fact, nearly 40% of the nonprofit’s participating students attend federally funded schools.

In addition, the Parents Challenge model innovatively supports low-income families through personal connection with each family, keeping and requiring parental involvement in the process, supporting scholars and parents with resources, and providing a holistic Parent Empowerment Program. The program hosts a series of sessions covering topics parents select the prior year, such as health and wellness, career preparation and money management.

With federal funding for education facing uncertainty, the private, Education Savings Account (ESA) model that Parents Challenge uses is receiving recognition nationwide. The organization recently received $1.7 million in grants and awards, including being named one of 25 semifinalists from around the country for the prestigious Yass Prize.

This year, the organization celebrates 25 years of serving families with educational-choice empowerment. Through the years, Parents Challenge has developed materials and other resources for helping other leaders create nonprofits focused on educational empowerment and parental choice. To learn more about the organization, visit their website at https://parentschallenge.org/.

Student Reflections:

"Margaret is graduating from Arizona State University this May 12, 2025, with a degree in Informatics. For her senior capstone project, she worked with Parents Challenge to enhance their website functionality and user experience. She enjoys creating meaningful digital experiences and found this project to be a fulfilling opportunity to drive positive impact through her technical skills." – Margaret Moran, Senior

"Shivansh is a senior at Arizona State University and will graduate on May 12, 2025, with a degree in Computer Science. While working on the Parents Challenge website, he focused on improving the user experience – making the site easier to use by updating the Events page and adding search and filter options to the Resources section so families could find information more quickly. Shivansh says the best part of the project was knowing his work could help real people in a meaningful way." – Shivansh Shrivastava

"Kevin is a senior at Arizona State University, graduating on May 12, 2025, with a BS in Computer Science and a focus in Cybersecurity. While working on the Parents Challenge website, he enhanced the user experience and added features to help families more easily navigate school options. Kevin says what he enjoyed most was contributing to a meaningful mission while gaining valuable hands-on experience." – Kevin Johnston

About Parents Challenge
Parents Challenge is a Colorado Springs-based nonprofit dedicated to empowering parents to choose the best educational opportunities for their children. Through comprehensive support, including information, training, mentoring, tools, and financial resources, Parents Challenge equips families to make informed educational decisions. Find out more at https://parentschallenge.org.

Mackenzie Spillane
Fascinate Communications
+1 719-648-4291
email us here
Visit us on social media:
LinkedIn
Instagram
Facebook
YouTube
X