Thanks to generosity of Microsoft, we were able to continue the STEAM learning which is the backbone of the academic component of our 2-week BOSS™ camp for student athletes from under-resourced communities and schools with 2 workshops called Learn to Code Flatverse. Our BOSS™ student athletes built their own Flatverse game using TouchDevelop.  They learned coding fundamentals, and got hands-on instruction on how to read and write basic code.  They also learned how to publish their game, so others can play it on their computer or mobile device.

Our plan is to have additional groups of BOSS™ student athletes take advantage of the Learn to Code Flatverse sessions before moving to the 4-session workshop called Create Your Own Business where our youngsters will select a business idea that interests them. They will learn how to fund the business, calculate their start-up costs, discover their breakeven point, and finally, when they would reach profitability.

Microsoft is committed to increasing access to computer science education. Through its global YouthSpark initiative, the company is partnering with ESP to make more computer science education courses, trainings and resources available, so student athletes from under-resourced communities and schools can learn the computational thinking and problem-solving skills that will help them today and in the future. Together with Microsoft, we’re working hard to make sure that that no matter where a student lives or what their background is — they have the opportunity to learn computer science and explore how it can help them achieve their goals and dreams.