Day of Tech Empowers 75 High School Students with Hands-On Learning Experience
May 3, 2024 / Brooke Faulkner / News
FREDERICK, MD — May 3, 2024 — techfrederick, a non-profit membership organization comprised of local tech companies, partnered with Frederick County Public Schools LYNX (Linking Youth to New Experiences) program offered its third Day of Tech exploratory experience for Frederick High School students on April 26, 2024, to inspire a strong, more diverse, intentional pipeline of tech talent in Frederick.
More than 70 students attended the half-day experience at Hood College, which aimed to educate them on career opportunities in tech. techfrederick partnered with six diverse local tech leaders who delivered 15 informative sessions covering five different tech disciplines to the students. The event concluded with a techfrederick sponsored networking lunch, allowing the students to get to know the local tech leaders and ask any additional questions they had.
“Our LYNX scholars had an amazing opportunity to learn about various careers in the field of tech that they did not know existed,” said LYNX Program Advocate Beth Sands. “They connected with local professionals who opened the doors of opportunity and professional goal setting.” Frederick High School Senior Jaylin Edwards noted, “I thought today’s experience was fun, especially because I like computer science and web design; I love all things tech. One thing I took away from this experience was visual analytics. I honestly didn’t know what it was; it opened my eyes to see that something in tech is exciting.”
techfrederick’s Day of Tech offered the students informative sessions on application development, artificial intelligence and machine learning, cybersecurity, data visualization, and project management. Each student could choose three different sessions to attend depending on their interests. “As professionals and adults, it’s our responsibility to share our experiences and knowledge with the next generations of the workforce so they’re better set for success than we were at their age. Opportunities like Day of Tech are perfect for supporting students and showing them that they have allies in the coming chapters of their lives,” said Orases Senior Business Analyst and Application Development Day of Tech host Courtney Lewis.
CEO of Bolt Innovations and Day of Tech host for Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Jonathan Pernell, commented, “I’m fortunate to have the opportunity to support the growth and development of future leaders. I wish I had a similar opportunity when I was in high school. I believe it can help students save years figuring out how they get involved in a technology career or entrepreneurship or start understanding the art of networking and marketing themselves. This event is a big win for the City of Frederick, and great teamwork and collaboration by techfrederick, Hood College, LYNX, and FCPS represent a great model for industry, higher education, and K-12 education partnerships.”
On April 19, 2024, techfrederick was awarded a $10,000 Equity and Inclusion Splash Grant from the City of Frederick. The grant aims to broaden the Day of Tech experience to additional high schools within the Frederick County Public School system and other local community organizations. With this funding, more students will have the chance to explore the possibilities in technology.
techfrederick’s mission is to connect, educate, and empower a strong technology community and its partners by fostering growth, innovation, and collaboration to benefit all who live and work in the Frederick region.
Contact:
Meghan Sweigart, Executive Director
msweigart@techfrederick.org
443.277.8195
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