Every day on his way to work Patrick McConlogue passes a young man who lives on the streets — a guy whose eyes still shine with the light of determination and intelligence.
Last week, McConlogue, a New York City entrepreneur, programmer and designer, decided to offer the man a choice: Either he could accept $100 in cash, or he could learn how to code and be given three books on JavaScript, a used laptop and free lessons for one hour each day.
Leo accepted the offer of programming lessons.
Patrick promised to write updates on his blog (Medium.com), letting his readers know how the experiment was progressing.
In the first August 25 update, McConlogue wrote that Leo really is a genius: “As I sat there becoming increasing stunned, he rattled off import/export prices on food, the importance of solar and green energy, and his approval for ‘efficient public transportation initiatives [referring to NY’s new Citibike]’.”
“He is smart, logical, and articulate. Most importantly, he is serious.”
Follow the unfolding story on Leo’s Facebook Community, Journeyman.