Our Mission
At Gemstone Academy, we believe the future belongs to young entrepreneurs who can identify problems, validate solutions, and build products that real people want. We're not just teaching kids to code—we're empowering them to become the next generation of startup founders.
Our students don't just learn programming concepts; they launch real startups, raise funding, and ship products to actual users. By the time they graduate, they have a portfolio of live businesses and the entrepreneurial mindset to change the world.
Our Values
Ship Early, Ship Often
- Real products launched to real users each rank
- Customer validation drives every decision
- Iterate based on actual market feedback
- Demo days showcase live startups to investors
Fail Fast, Learn Faster
- Encourage bold ideas and rapid experimentation
- Learn from startup failures and pivots
- Build resilience through real-world challenges
- Celebrate learning over perfection
Impact First
- Build solutions for problems that matter
- Measure success by user adoption and revenue
- Create businesses that make a difference
- Foster ethical entrepreneurship and responsibility
Meet the Team
The Experts Behind Gemstone Academy
Our founding team consists of serial entrepreneurs, startup veterans, and industry professionals who have built, funded, and scaled real companies. Every mentor at Gemstone Academy brings hands-on experience from the startup trenches—because you can't teach entrepreneurship from a textbook.
Founding Team
Jackson (Jax) Hutton
Co-Founder & CEO
Specializing in Systems Programming, Jax has been writing software since he was 8. His lifelong desire for a different approach to youth coding education inspired him to start Gemstone Academy when he was 16. He has worked in the professional world since high school. He is now at Northeastern University, where he is pursuing a major in Computer Science with a minor in Chinese. Beyond the binary, Jax enjoys piano and rock climbing.
Jeffrey Drew
Co-Founder & COO
In the academic world, Jeffrey is pursuing majors in Computer Science, Economics, and the pre-law track. He specializes in machine learning and remote sensing, and does AI research under Dr. Alina Zare and the US Department of Energy. At UF, Jeffrey competes as an attorney for the undergraduate mock trial team. Outside of academia, he builds automated pipelines for the legal industry. When he can, he plays table tennis and bikes.
Lamberto Roscioli
Director of Education
Lamberto has 30 years of experience at Motorola Inc., where he held roles in manufacturing, program management, and quality engineering, and led teams in China and India. He began coding in 1982 and, over the past decade, has focused on education. Now a Florida Certified Teacher, he teaches AP Computer Science at Pompano Beach High School. Lamberto is also an entrepreneur, pilot, and investor who enjoys flying, cooking with his children, and visiting Italy.
General Instructors
Yuwei Huang
Amethyst Rank Instructor
Yuwei is an experienced developer and computer science student at the University of Florida. She has spearheaded initiatives with the Freshman Leadership Engineering Group and WiCSE (Women in Computer Science and Engineering). Yuwei is passionate about adding personal creativity to programming.
Micah Tam
Amethyst Rank Instructor
Pursuing a degree in Computer Science at the University of Florida, Micah is passionate about the applications of programming and innovations in AI. His industry experience has equipped him with the skills to navigate the evolving landscape of computer science. Micah also enjoys playing all kinds of sports and is a self-taught pianist.
Want to Mentor the Next Generation of Entrepreneurs?
We're always seeking exceptional mentors who have real startup experience and love guiding young founders. Our ideal candidates have built products, raised funding, or led technical teams at growth-stage companies.
15+ credit hours of university-level computer science coursework required, with 3.0+ GPA. Startup experience strongly preferred.
Why join the Gemstone entrepreneur network?
Competitive Compensation
Amethyst-level instructors start at $50/hour.
Flexible Schedule
Work as much, or as little, as you like, whenever you like.
Entrepreneur Community
Connect with like-minded founders and potential co-founders or advisors.
Gemstone Projects
Exclusive access to startup resources and community to help you get your ideas off the ground.
To join our mentor network, email support@gemstone.academy with your startup experience, résumé, GitHub profile, university transcript, 2 examples of products you've built with descriptions, and a 100-word bio about your entrepreneurial journey. We'll respond within 2 business days to schedule an interview.