Des Moines, Iowa – Tech Journey, Inc. recently received a $2,500 contribution from the Polk County Board of Supervisors to support Tech Camp 2021. The award will be used to support Tech Journey’s annual summer camp experience for over 100 central Iowa students in grades 8 through 12.

Tech Camp is Tech Journey’s flagship program highlighted by an immersive annual summer camp experience for central Iowa high school students to explore and engage with technology. Tech Camp 2021 will take place July 20 through July 23, 2021, at the historic Franklin Junior High in Des Moines.

The Polk County Board of Supervisors sponsors various community events, such as galas, dinners, walks, etc. to support important issues in our community. “Polk County’s contribution helps us continue our mission of providing opportunities that inspire local youth to increase their knowledge and interest in technology,” said Tim Sieber, Tech Journey Executive Director. “Tech Camp is central to carrying out our mission and influencing students to consider technology careers.”

Each year a cohort of 8th or 9th grade students are invited to register for Tech Camp and join the past four cohorts for the one-week summer camp. Thus, many students in the program attend camp each year for up to five years. Students who attend Tech Camp for three or more years become eligible to receive a $1,000 scholarship upon high school graduation. Tech Journey provides each student with a laptop, a Google Workspace account, tech for hands-on projects, content on relevant technologies/topics and access to local technology professionals.

During the week students attend inspirational keynote sessions, technology learning sessions and other activities including a closing ceremony and reception where they demonstrate projects worked on during camp. Technology learning sessions planned for this year include, but are not limited to, Agile, Arduino, cloud computing, cybersecurity, game development, HTML/CSS/JS, machine learning and Python. “Students not only learn from local professionals, but they get to engage with them and discuss education, careers, jobs, motivations, skills and additional resources,” said Sieber.