An After-School Activity for the Tech-Inclined
Teaching Tech at Silicon STEM Academy
February 29, 2016Testimonial Supporting HB-1289: from John Scarborough, co-founder of Silicon STEM Academy
April 29, 2016This after-school technology training academy expands on traditional STEM curriculum.
BY HEATHER MUNDT
MARCH 9 2016, 4:00 PM
– Photo courtesy of ShutterStock
If you listen closely as you walk into Denver’s Silicon STEM Academy in University Park, there’s hardly any racket of students or teachers pleading for quiet. Instead, you’ll hear the clicking of computer keyboards and the modest beeping of triggered circuit-board sensors, all amid the collaboration between instructor and pupil. “They’re here because they want to be here,” says Coding 101 Instructor Eileen Adair. “Here there’s no test, no quiz. They’re all here for the sake of learning.”
This after-school technology training center opened in January after cofounders John and Kelly Scarborough saw a need to fill the gap for tech-interested kids who want to learn more than their traditional schools can provide. “So many parents say they’re grateful to find us,” Kelly says. “This is what they’re looking for.” Not long ago, they were those very same parents, seeking a programming class for their tech-loving oldest son, Evan, now a sophomore at the Colorado School of Mines. “Not every kid is into sports or music,” John says. “Evan considered tech ‘his sport,’ and we wanted to nurture, enrich, and encourage his interest.” But the entrepreneurial couple was stunned to find there were no options for their son outside of community college classes.