We're "Weird"! Camp Wired is homegrown, right here in Austin, Texas! Camp Wired was created to provide Austin-area kids with a safe and fun educational environment centered around computers and computer technology. Austin-area kids are invited to spend their summer at Westlake High School supervised and instructed by certified Austin-area teachers. Campers will advance their computer skills as they learn from our experienced teaching staff. The campers are having so much fun they don't even realize they are learning! Cool!

Camp Wired's History :

The day I taught a preschooler how to make a webpage in my mom's classroom, I knew I was meant to teach computers to kids. Teachers in her school were amazed, I just didn't think twice about it! I saw that the student was interested, ready, and willing to learn, so I taught him a little bit of designing, coding with HTML and the basic idea of FTPing! No sweat! My mom's coworkers were taken aback and suggested that I teach computers to kids, and so begun my journey!

I absolutely love teaching and computers, technology and education fascinate me. Camp Wired was born from these two passions. I have been working in educational technology for 8 years. I earned my degree in Elementary Education, pre-K-8th grade from Purdue University. At Purdue, I participated in many inner-city projects merging technology and education. After graduation, I worked in conjunction with the NCAA at Yale University's NYSP (National Youth Sports Program) as a lead educator and then a lead Science and Technology teacher at Harker Academy in San Jose, California, the heart of the Silicon Valley.

I then returned to the East Coast and earned my Master’s in Educational Technology from Columbia University in New York City. At Columbia, I worked as an intern at the Institute of Learning Technologies where I worked with students and teachers in Harlem, Brooklyn, and Manhattan to integrate technology into the New York City curriculum. My Master's thesis revolved around the work I did in the schools and how my work helped to bridge the technology divide. I was also a guest lecturer at Long Island University helping education majors integrate technology into their lesson plans during my study at Columbia. After graduating from Columbia in 2 semesters with honors, I began my career as a Campus Technology Coordinator at Addison Elementary School in Palo Alto, California.

My husband brought me to Austin in 2002 where I have been the Campus Tech Coordinator at West Ridge Middle School in the Eanes school district for the past 5 years and director of Camp Wired for the last 3 summers. Last year I won an "Eanespiration" award for my work at my campus in technology.

I enjoy supporting the local community and find community service to be an essential part of being a contributing member to society. I am the National Jr Honor Society sponsor on campus and share my belief of community service with the students of WRMS. I have taught classes in the Austin Community for free or for donation for the past 5 years. Through Camp Wired, I've raised over $6000 for the Austin community. Please email me if your school would like to do a fundraiser with Camp Wired at your own school.

Camp Wired details:

Camp Wired emphasizes a low student-teacher ratio with one computer per camper. Our teachers are experienced and certified with an average of 10 years in education! All teachers have had a complete background check and are current local school district employees. Camp Wired is designed for entering 5th-9th graders. Camp Wired Junior is designed for entering 2nd-5th graders.

Camp Wired was created to reach Austin-area kids to give them high quality computer instruction at a reasonable price. This will be our fourth summer of learning at Camp Wired. We were able to give three scholarships last year. In the future, we hope to be able to give more scholarships for attendance. Contact me via email or phone if you are in need of a scholarship.

Each half-day, week-long session is $200 with a $20 lab fee which campers bring to to camp on the first day. Students can take both morning and afternoon classes. 

Extended hours are available--this allows your camper to be dropped off as early as 8:30 (morning class) and picked up by 4:30 (afternoon class). All day campers will spend 20-30 minutes M-Thursday in the gym or outside. Final projects will be presented on Friday. Final projects will be posted online by the following Monday.

Curriculum:

Our curriculum is created by experienced, certified Austin-area teachers and is designed with kids in mind. Students receive handouts, detailed project specifications, and instruction that scaffolds learning in a way that addresses many different learning styles. The curriculum is constantly reviewed and revised throughout the school year.

Special Needs:

While Camp Wired teachers are experienced and certified, we are not specifically a special needs camp. If your child receives special services at school, we will do our best to address those needs in our classes. Please call me or email me to discuss your child's specific needs. We want your child's experience at Camp Wired to be a successful one.

However, if your child requires an aide at school, then an aide must accompany your child to class. The aide must be at least 18 years old and must provide Camp Wired a valid background check. Please contact us prior to enrolling so we can discuss your child's needs. Our goal is to make sure every child succeeds at Camp Wired.

Courses: Computer game design, digital video editing, web design, graphic design, and animation.

Enrollment is processed by Eanes Community Education. Call 732-9022 or purchase classes online.

Camp Classes, 2008:

RPG Maker 2000, RPG XP Extreme, Toon-a-mation, Digital Art, Hollywood Beats, Digital Beats, Game Craze, Jr. Gamers, Web Programmers, Gamemaker, Jr. Photographers, RPGjr, Girls Got Game, Jr. Animators, Comical Adventures.