RICHMOND,
VA – May 10, 2016 – CapTech is pleased to recognize CapTecher Macon Pegram who
was nominated for the Richmond
Technology Council's (RichTech) award for Innovation in
Education. RichTech will be presenting
Richmond's Twenty-First Annual "Academy Awards" of Technology at their Tech Gala on May 11, 2016 at
the Greater Richmond Convention Center. The Awards celebrate technologists
driving the River City's technology-based economy. Pegram's RVA Coder Dojo received
two nominations for making education in programing and coding accessible to
Richmond's youth.
Pegram
founded the RVA Coder Dojo in June 2014 after learning about similar programs
around the world. The program offers free monthly sessions for children in the community,
ages 5 – 17 (though they have had some younger guests), with the desire to help
young digital consumers become digital producers. The Dojo does this through a
combination of lecture-based workshops and self-paced learning using: Scratch,
Java, Web Programing (Javascript, CSS, HTML), Robocode, Minecraft, Computer
Science Unplugged, and a monthly "Hour of Code".
The
Dojo has over 200 "ninjas" registered and has held more than 50 sessions in the
past two years, including a hackathon. Partnering with the Richmond Public
Library, who provides free meeting spaces and computer resources, Pegram, along
with a cast of mentors and volunteers, hosts two parallel lecture type sessions
on Saturdays– one for beginners and one for more advanced coders – where
mentors guide coders through a project. The Saturday sessions then conclude
with the "Hour of Code", after which the coders have the opportunity
to present what they have created in the hour. In addition to learning coding
skills, the sessions foster soft skills such as collaboration and
communication.Ninjas from the program have gone on to become active members of
robotics teams and frequent contributors on Scratch.
Pegram
has consulted with the County of Chesterfield to help bring technology based
programs to their library system and will be assisting Henrico County Library in
hosting a Hackathon this summer. Fellow CapTechers Kevin Dendtler, Chris Heniz,
David Burgess, and Josh Stickles have donated their time and served as mentors
at the program. Additionally, IT Director Brett Bajcsi donated ten used laptops
that are available to kids who do not have access to their own.
To
learn more about the RVA Coder Dojo, visit them online at:
Twitter:
@rvacoderdojo
Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/RVA-CoderDojo/
Web
Page: http://rvacoderdojo.org/
