The University of Tennessee Martin’s Ripley Center awarded digital skills grant

The University of Tennessee Martin's Ripley Center has been awarded a grant from the State of Tennessee’s Department of Economic and Community Development. The digital skills grant will help to enhance existing programs like its computer coding camps, summer camps, and teacher workshops.

According to an article on The University of Tennessee Martin’s website, Jessica Cannon-Macklin, who serves as the Ripley Center’s interim director, explained the ways in which the grant will be used to supplement and enhance the center’s existing programs. Cannon-Macklin said, “We did a coding camp last summer with Code Crew from Memphis. We had a really good turnout, and the parents said they had never had anything like that in Lauderdale County before. The teachers’ workshop is a new added feature. The one we did last year was an introduction to coding camp, but now, we’re going to do a curriculum that is more in-depth this year. We’ll be working with robots and actually having the children come up with their own coding.”

Dr. Simpfronia Taylor, who serves as the director of grant and community programs at the University of Tennessee Martin’s Ripley Center, read about the grant that was being offered through the State of Tennessee. The Digital Skills, Education, and Workforce Development grants program works to improve digital skills to help individuals gain technical proficiency for the workplace to help the economy and the landscape of innovation.

“We feel excited to bring something unique and different to the rural counties. It’s nice to offer some more technologically advanced camps and workshops for our area,” said Cannon-Macklin.

The University of Tennessee Martin’s Ripley Center was opened in 2005 and provides lab space, classrooms for nursing and science classes, a distance learning space, and a lecture hall. The space provides support for 80 degree programs at the University of Tennessee Martin.

For more information about The University of Tennessee Martin, visit the school’s website.