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The 28 participants in last Saturday’s URBAN TxT's Summer Coding Academy, accompanied by staff and Academy mentors.
Dateline Los Angeles – Teens between the ages of 12 and 17 participated in URBAN TxT’s Demo Day, a fast-pitch session presenting their web and mobile applications that address community issues.
Before a filled lecture hall at USC last Saturday afternoon, 28 teens from South Los Angeles, Watts and Compton concluded their participation in URBAN Teens eXploring Technology (URBAN TxT) Summer Coding Academy by presenting their web and mobile apps at Demo Day, the organization’s annual end-of-summer event.
The production teams, comprised of project managers, developers, web and graphic designers, presented their projects to an audience of about 150 supporters and a panel of judges comprised of key leaders in the tech industry.
“When I think of South Los Angeles I don’t think of crime and drugs,” said Maliik, age 16, during his presentation of the Facebook app Plus Articles – a web application that will promote positive stories from the South Los Angeles community. “I think of kind, intelligent, driven people like ourselves. Our Facebook app will help portray the community that I am proud to be a part of.”
All 28 young men worked long hours, learning computer languages, web design, public speaking, and entrepreneurship as part of URBAN TxT’s 15-week summer coding academy.
Some of the other products developed along the way include L.A. Volunteers, an iPhone app that pairs up high school students with volunteer opportunities based on their interests to help them meet graduation requirements, and SAT Fighters, a ninja fighting app for Android devices that helps teens prepare for the SAT vocabulary test in a fun and interactive way.
Xavier, 16, was the product manager for SAT Fighters, elected as keynote speaker by his peers. During his speech he talked about the fun moments shared with his fellow TxT’ers, like an open mic karaoke and stand-up comedy session during one late night of coding. Along with his technical skills, his leadership and public speaking skills also improved while with URBAN TxT.
“I’ve never felt as much of a leader as I do now<” Xavier said. “Honestly, I can lead an army.” The charming teen signed off his speech with a presidential wave that matched his pinstripe suit and freshly polished shoes.
Those in attendance at Demo Day were the students' family members and friends, along with supporters of URBAN TxT, such as former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan and Los Angeles City Councilman Curren Price (District 9, South Los Angeles).
“Youth and technology are key for our future in the New Ninth,” said Mr. Price. “I am thankful to organizations like URBAN TxT. They are the agents of that change.” Representatives from Microsoft, 19 Entertainment, Unite, Softfolio, Bean Genius, LK3, and Atom Factory were also in attendance.
URBAN TxT’s efforts continue this upcoming Fall and next Spring, as preparations are made for next year's Summer Coding Academy.
To support the organization’s work to set the tech world on fire by inspiring teens to become tech entrepreneurs, companies and individuals can make monetary donations online at www.urbantxt.org/donate. Photos and additional details from Demo Day available at URBAN TxT’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/UrbanTeenseXploringTechnology) and URBAN TxT’s blog (http://urbantxt.tumblr.com/).
Mr. Vasquez may be contacted at juan@urbantext.com
