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Community Corner

Girls rule at Geek Squad Summer Academy

Metro Atlanta Girl Scouts show they're just as skilled with technology as the boys.

Best Buy’s Geek Squad and Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta are teaming up to make cutting edge technology accessible to adolescent girls at Geek Squad Summer Academy.

This week, about 125 Girl Scouts from throughout metro Atlanta convened on Southern Polytechnic State University to learn new technology skills such as digital photography, digital animation and PC hardware while still having fun.

Geek Squad Summer Academy got its start in 2007 when Moira Hardek, a Geek squad field agent, decided to bring technology training to an all-girls school in Chicago. Hardek felt that there were limitless opportunities for boys to explore technology, but that these chances weren’t extended to girls.

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The first Geek Squad Summer Academy was so successful that similar camps were set up across the United States the following year. Geek Squad Academy has held a camp in metro Atlanta every year since 2008, but now the aim of the program has expanded.

“The focus has evolved more to show all kids that this technology exists and they can work it and they can learn it,” said Bryant Vasquez, Geek Squad field lieutenant. “That way they can pursue a career in the future.”

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Zoie Lewis-Howell, a student and member of Girl Scout Troop 2117, was apprehensive about coming to camp. She and her friend from Troop 2117, Amirah Frue, thought camp might be boring. However, after two days of activities that included digital animation, photography, dancing and time to play with X-Box and Wii consoles, the girls said they can’t wait to come back to camp next year.

Lewis-Howell, who before coming to camp wanted to be a fashion designer, found a new sense of confidence and possibly a new career aspiration.

“I could probably fix a computer if I tried,” she said. “I really would like to look more into the video editing since we learned all the things like how light and color and things work like that.”

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