Pitt’s Technology Leadership Initiative Provides Hands-On Robotics Training to Underrepresented Students

PITTSBURGH—High schoolers interested in robotics and female middle school students with a penchant for computer programming will have opportunities to explore this summer through the University of Pittsburgh’s Technology Leadership Initiative (TLI). This is the seventh year for TLI, which was founded to spur an interest in and awareness of computer science in students largely underrepresented in the field.

The High School Robotics Academy will be held from July 2 to Aug. 13, with two sessions daily. Working in teams, students will use LEGO® blocks to compete in such real-world challenges as maze navigation and tackling obstacle courses. Students will receive training on how to build complex robotic sensors and robot arms as well as how to program “smart” robots. The academy is open to students entering grades 9-12. 

The Tech Divaz Workshop will be held from June 25 to 29, also with two sessions daily. This all-girls computer science and programming workshop will focus on programming with Alice, an innovative 3-D programming environment providing easy animation creations for storytelling. Additionally, participating females will learn how to build and program LEGO® robots to perform a number of tasks. The workshop is open to female students entering grades 7-9.

Interested students should apply online at www.cs.pitt.edu/tli by June 8. Full and partial need-based scholarships are available, and TLI works to accommodate all students.

For more information, contact Tasha Rauso at 412-624-8422 or tli@cs.pitt.edu.  

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