Responsible Technology Youth Power Fund – Civics Unplugged & Connected Camps – Part 3
SGUK Episode 107
WHAT WE DO
Civics Unplugged is an ecosystem dedicated to training, funding, and connecting young people who are using new approaches to solving issues in democracy, climate, our lives online, and so much more.
OUR PROGRAMS
Civics Unplugged programs blend history, civics, and democracy with emerging technology, culture, and personal development. Our goal is to prepare Fellows to find lifelong pathways in social impact, and be empowered to turn ideas into reality.
They run year-round in-person and virtually. Any high school student can apply.
Civics Unplugged Programs are designed for high school aged leaders who have innovative ideas to solve community issues – and want to start building them now.
All Programs are tuition free.
Participants will join a global community of civic leaders, learn from leaders, and get hands on experience with new ideas and technologies that are changing the world.
Graduates get access to funding, internships, and mentorship that turns education to action.
OUR COMMUNITY
Our community of program graduates gets access to a suite of tools that help their personal & professional development for life. Graduates can get funding to launch local impact projects, be matched with mentors, find internships, and work to launch new initiatives at Civics Unplugged.
We are intergenerationally led – so our community also votes on all major decisions at Civics Unplugged.
A COMMUNITY THAT SUPPORTS YOU FOR LIFE
Civics Unplugged programs blend history, civics, and democracy with emerging technology, culture, and personal development. Our goal is to prepare Fellows to find lifelong pathways in social impact, and be empowered to turn ideas into reality.
They run year-round in-person and virtually. Any high school student can apply.
OUR COMMUNITY
Our community of program graduates gets access to a suite of tools that help their personal & professional development for life. Graduates can get funding to launch local impact projects, be matched with mentors, find internships, and work to launch new initiatives at Civics Unplugged.
We are intergenerationally led – so our community also votes on all major decisions at Civics Unplugged.
Intergenerational Collaboration
Civics Unplugged’s co-founders are 20, 34, and 38. Our team represents generational diversity – and we are committed to shifting power to youth in our community and across the nation.
Authentically Challenging
Paradigms
The world is changing every day. Old paradigms, systems, and thought-models must be authentically challenged for us to design the future.
Transparency & Ownership
Most young people are told that changing the world isn’t a sustainable career. Too often, our brightest youth choose career paths that are misaligned with their passions and the health of their communities. Our goal is to provide Civics Unplugged Alumni with the funding, mentorship, and community they need to start building social impact companies right now. Once a Fellow graduates, they join the CU Alumni Community where they are provided funding, mentorship, and a home to experiment, fail, and create.
INTERNSHIP PLACEMENT
GRANT FUNDING
MENTORING MATCHING
GLOBAL COMMUNITY
JOB PLACEMENT
LEARNING FUNDING
THE IMPACT OF CIVICS UNPLUGGED
3,648 FELLOWS GRADUATED 11% ACCEPTANCE RATE 74% PEOPLE OF COLOR 74% YOUNG WOMEN 40% FIRST GEN COLLEGE STUDENTS ALL 50 STATES & 47 COUNTRIES WHY WE EXIST
The TEAM
Figure 1 Verta Maloney Figure 2 Josh Thompson
Figure 3:Nick Delis Figure 4:Zoe Jenkins
Figure 5: Thanosi Delos Figure 6: Madison Adams
Figure 7 Kuna Ruiz Figure 8: Nick Varney
Figure 9: Michaela Davenport
THE BOARD
Alice Johnson Cain
Baratunde Thurston
Christian Anthony
David Cooperstein
Gary Kraut
Jeffrey Silverman
Lowell Aptman
Nnamdi Okike
Sarah Rose
Sean Clayton
Steven Schwartz
Verta Maloney
FEATURED ALUMNI PROJECTS
Privacy Policy • Terms of Service—
Civics Unplugged is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation
© 2022 Civics Unplugged Inc.
Designed with love by the kids at Civics Unplugged.
Connected Camps
Fun and Flexible Online Learning
Year-round online programs and summer camps for
THE BEST ONLINE CLASSES FOR KIDS
Get all the support your child craves, from an online community of friendly coders, builders, players and designers.
Connected Camps programs are:
- Live, online: Kids interact with other kids and our experienced instructors in real-time, online. We list our programs on Outschool and use Minecraft, Scratch, and popular esports titles.
- Log in from anywhere: Your child can connect to our programs from anywhere (at home or on the road, wherever an internet connection is available), through a laptop or desktop computer.
- Small group work: All of our programs are run in a small group setting, allowing kids to share and learn from each other, leading to new friendships and lots of fun.
- Tailored to your child’s interests: Instruction is hands-on and highly personalized. Our goal is to ignite a passion for learning, collaboration, and creativity.
View Classes by Theme
Community
Join a community of Minecraft enthusiasts who design, create, and survive together with the help of expert counselors.
Esports
Level up your game and turn a pastime into a passion with Esports training, coaching, and practice. Learn about the world of Esports and it’s possibilities for growth and success.
Exploration
Journey through time and space to explore ancient history, the solar system and more. All in the game of Minecraft!
Arts
Build new worlds, craft original stories, put on plays, create and share your own Minecraft recordings, animations, and more.
Technology
Learn how to code, engineer, and design games like a pro using Minecraft and Roblox. Expert counselors are on hand to help with your projects!
VIEW BY SCHEDULE
VIEW ALL CLUBS
VIEW ALL COURSES
Kids Love Our Programs
My son LOVED this class. It was his first experience with Outschool and asked to do more classes. The knowledge he gained he applied for hours after the class was done and was eager to show off his new skills to us. The set up was easy and I loved that he was connecting with other students around the world who shared the same interests as him. The teacher he said was awesome.
My daughter loved this class. She hasn’t stopped talking about Minecraft ever since! The teachers were very patient and kind, and they kept everything running smoothly.
This was a great way for my 8 year old twins to meet other kids online and have that online experience, but in a safe environment. They both really enjoy the class and have been taking it for several weeks. It was very easy to download the programs needed to sign on.
About Connected Camps
Connected Camps is a not-for-profit organization providing connected learning experiences that foster creativity, problem solving, collaboration and interest-driven learning.
Three girl geeks and learning scientists with a passion for education and the positive potential of technology started Connected Camps in 2015. Since then, our online programs have introduced thousands of kids to coding and design.
Connected Camps’ mission is to build a global online community where kids build, code, play, and learn from one another. Learn more about our organization here.
As Seen On
HOW OUR ONLINE PROGRAMS WORK
Jump to: Getting Started
Our programs are live, online! This means kids interact with other kids and our experienced instructors in real-time, online. Most of our programs are taught with Minecraft, using a custom server. We list our programs on Outschool and some programs use Zoom video chat and other free online platforms. Kids use text chat and voice chat to communicate, share their work with others in real-time, and collaborate on projects designed to fuel their imagination and build skills.
- Log in from anywhere: Your child can connect to our programs from anywhere (at home or on the road, wherever an internet connection is available), through a laptop or desktop computer.
- Small group work: All of our programs are run in a small group setting, allowing kids to share and learn from each other, leading to new friendships and lots of fun.
- Tailored to your child’s interests: Instruction is hands-on and highly personalized. Our goal is to ignite a passion for learning, collaboration, and creativity.
Read More About How Our Programs Work
Once kids get over the hurdle of communicating online, virtual camps and communities are a more accessible alternative to physical camps and afterschool programs for some families.”He was a bit shy at first because it’s his first video chat with people other than friends and his family, but he quickly got the hang of it and is learning and having fun at the same time! Dad and I sit next to him in case he needs our help but I imagine by the 5th class he won’t need us at all.”
“Having an online camp is perfect for [my daughter] because she can be at home, her happy place, and still get to do something fun, interactive and learn about something she already loves,” said Karen Gilbo, who lives outside Washington, D.C., and has enrolled her 12-year-old daughter in several Connected Camp programs over the last two years. “This is the first time she has ever asked directly to be in a program because she really enjoys the interaction.” Even though the personal interactions take place online, they don’t necessarily stay that way, said Gilbo. “The only thing [my daughter] has asked is if she can go meet the counselors in person and when can she start being a counselor herself.”
Getting Started
We list our programs on the Outschool marketplace, and use other other platforms such as Teamspeak and Minecraft and to run our programs.
https://youtu.be/tRcJAgWbOjI?si=VSKQvzaX8AF0tyF6
https://youtu.be/CsGSyuEBOkw?si=kbZv32vOyfMy_VuC
How these organisations are described in their list of 26 Non Profit organisations in this cohort:-
- Civics Unplugged provides young people with the training, funding, and community they need to become civic innovators.
- Connected Camps leads with the mission to build a safe and empowering global online community where kids build, code, play, mentor, and learn from one another. To accomplish this, they tap the power of youth tech experts to teach and mentor.
That is it from me this week. Plenty more on their respective websites, but this is meant to give you an overview of what each organisation is about and their aspirations on how they will utilise the funding granted.
Ivy Barrow
3rd September 2023
Reference Sources
https://www.civicsunplugged.org/
https://www.civicsunplugged.org/programs
https://www.civicsunplugged.org/academy
https://www.civicsunplugged.org/climate
https://www.civicsunplugged.org/austin
https://www.civicsunplugged.org/fellowship
https://connectedcamps.com/overview-of-programs
https://connectedcamps.com/how-online-programs-work
https://connectedcamps.com/summer-camp
Parenting Blog section of the website:-
https://blog.connectedcamps.com/?_ga=2.219603994.208442072.1693423929-1431857794.1693423929