SOCORRO, N.M. – The buzzing noise coming from the New Mexico Tech campus this summer isn’t from bumblebees. It’s the sound of teens and tweens learning a variety of information technology  topics at the inaugural Computer Science Buzz Camp.

The camp consists of weeklong on-campus learning experiences for seventh- and eighth-graders the week of July 18 to 22 and for high schoolers from July 25 to 29. Students from across the state signed up for the 30 openings for the first-ever, free computer science camps.

Funding for the camp – which covers a stay in a Tech dorm room and meals at the Fidel Student Center from Sunday through Friday – came from anonymous donors, according to Samantha Vigil of the Office for Advancement, who served as project manager for the Buzz Camp initiative.

“The donors have a very special interest in nontraditional learning as well as gauging new and innovative ways to teach things,” she said. 

Donors covered the cost of Tech hosting students enrolled in the master’s of science teaching (MST) program for a week in mid-June to learn about the coding program Python. The teachers have spent the time in the interim developing their own projects for the Buzz Camps based on what they learned about coding and apps. 

Buzz Camp students receive instruction from the teachers as well as Computer Science Department faculty and participate in hands-on activities, culminating in a final project they present at the end of the week.

“There’s been similar camps, but this is the first one that New Mexico Tech is hosting as part of an MST program,” Vigil said.

Topics covered include in the Buzz Camp’s curriculum include:

• Introduction to Computational Thinking in Python
• Introduction to Cybersecurity
• Introduction to Machine Learning
• Introduction to Game Design
• Mobile Application Development

In addition to days spent in the computer lab, students are involved in a variety of fun activities and games.

“Their days are pretty jam-packed,” Vigil said. “We’re keeping the kids hopping.”

Due to strong interest in the camps, Vigil said that in the future, three weeks may be offered, with high school students in two sets – ninth- and 10-graders together and 11th- and 12th-graders together. And, she said, similar camps might be patterned after the Buzz Camp model.

“If it’s successful and if there’s a lot of interest going forward, we plan to develop similar camps for math, engineering, and chemistry,” she said.