LaunchCode is excited to present the 2021 Moonshot Awards! In the spirit of entrepreneur Jim McKelvey, LaunchCode’s Moonshot Awards recognize the efforts of St. Louis trailblazers — those working toward new solutions to better our community. Moonshots are bold attempts at a better future. The 2021 Moonshot nominees are trying audacious things to move our…
LaunchCode COVID-19 Updates
Check here for updates about LaunchCode operations as the nationwide COVID-19 situation continues to evolve. First, we want to assure you that the well-being and safety of our LaunchCode community is of the utmost importance to us. LaunchCode has decided to continue delivering all classes virtually until further notice. To allow for student success in…
LaunchCode’s 4th Annual Trivia Night
“The LaunchCode Trivia Night was my favorite of 2020! There was plenty of opportunity to connect with teammates and the LaunchCode mission is so important for our region!” -Lynn J., 2020 Virtual Trivia Night Attendee “My team said it was more fun than in person trivia!” -2020 Virtual Trivia Attendee Join the fun from anywhere!…
Here’s to the new year and new opportunities for LaunchCoders
We’re celebrating the end of a long and trying year with hope and excitement for what’s to come in 2021. Despite the worst economic downturn of our lives and unemployment topping 14% in the last year, LaunchCode has launched nearly 300 tech careers and enrolled over 1,300 people in our free tech training courses. Here’s to the…
Removing obstacles to student success through LaunchCode’s supportive community
A Partnership with a Vision for a More Equitable Future Over the past year, the LaunchCode team has been diving deeper into what makes a successful LaunchCoder and evaluating student outcomes and support systems to see where we could continue to improve. Accenture, through both Corporate and Foundation support, has been one of LaunchCode’s pivotal…
Take Control of Your Financial Future
Taking control of your financial future can seem daunting, but in today’s uncertain economy, it’s more important than ever. That’s why LaunchCode hosted the 2nd Annual Financial Empowerment Workshop presented by Enterprise Bank & Trust. It was a great workshop with a lot of useful information. Watch the recorded workshop and all the breakout sessions…
Tech Unexpected
Sometimes the Best Things Come From Unexpected Places From truck drivers to retail staff, and everything in-between, each LaunchCoder that passes through our doors uses their dedication and effort from their previous (or still ongoing) jobs to learn the new languages, workflows, and tools of the tech trade today. This is what makes LaunchCoders the…
LaunchCode Presents: LC101 for Veterans, Miltary Family Members, & Transitioning Service Members
Building a diverse technology pipeline includes upskilling and training veterans Technology is changing the way we do business According to EMSI Labor Statistics for the STL metro area, in an average month between January and December 2019, there were 5,085 job postings for well-paying jobs of Computer Programmers and Developers. However, only an average of…
Nonprofits: How to Have a Successful Virtual Fundraising Event
In this webinar for nonprofits, Kathy will guide you through everything you need to know to plan a successful virtual trivia night fundraiser based on first-hand experience planning LaunchCode’s Annual Trivia Night during the COVID-19 pandemic and stay-at-home order. She’ll share tips and tricks and layout the pros and cons of hosting a virtual fundraiser.
Preserving LaunchCode’s Mission Post-COVID-19
The past eight weeks have challenged all of us in more ways than we could have predicted. For LaunchCode, that has meant transitioning our community-centric courses to remote delivery, embracing a new pattern of teamwork and collaboration from our homes and adjusting to an employment landscape plagued by uncertainty. Now, as we begin to understand…
Leading Without Answers
By Jeff Mazur, LaunchCode A portion of this blog post was originally published in the St. Louis Business Journal. Late last year, I was honored to be among a handful of area executives interviewed by the St. Louis Business Journal about leading their organizations. One question made me profoundly uncomfortable. It’s the one that has…
We 💚 CoderGirl & A Community Supporting Women in Tech
It’s February, so let’s spread the love for CoderGirl and our community partners! xoxo, CoderGirl What started out as an informal meetup by women with the intention to ignite conversation, empower and support one another and build and refine computer programming skills in 2014, has since transformed into a robust education and job placement program…
Black History Month: A Look at Leaders in Tech
Black History Month is a great time, but certainly not the only time, to celebrate and further inform ourselves on the deep and intricate history and culture of Black Americans. Black history is just as much about the historical black figures, who paved paths and reached back, as it is about today’s black history-makers. Throughout…
LaunchCode’s Moonshot Awards 2020
In the spirit of entrepreneur Jim McKelvey, LaunchCode’s Moonshot Awards recognize the efforts of St. Louis trailblazers — those working toward new solutions to better our community. Meet the 2020 Moonshot Award Winners and 2020 New Horizons Award Recipient, Dennis Lower The New Horizons Moonshot Award honors unique vision and sustained effort in pushing to the outer…
LaunchCode’s Annual Trivia Night is Virtual This Year
Join the LaunchCode Friends Board at the annual LaunchCode Trivia Night — now virtual! Trivia is back, from the safety of your own home! Gather a team of up to 10 participants for 6 rounds of challenging trivia, raffles, a game, prizes and more. You’ll be able to chat with your team in a private…
Approachable Computer Science Education Goes Beyond the Code
By Carly Langlois, Education Curriculum Developer There are countless reasons why computer science education is important. Too many to fit into one blog post. Technology is everywhere. It infiltrates every industry and heavily impacts our day-to-day lives. Modern living is powered by algorithms and coded bits and bytes. Computer programming is the literacy of our…
What Four St. Louis Startups Say about the Region’s Tech Scene
At LaunchCode, we love adding tech talent to the St. Louis startup scene. Not only is LaunchCode fueling a pipeline for tech talent growth in St. Louis, but the city is being put on the map for growing a tech startup ecosystem. We reached out to four startups we work with to hear their thoughts…
Helping St. Louis Startups Launch Successful Tech Teams
Innovator. Scrappy. Grit. Collaborative. Visionary. Believer. Ambitious. Eager. Motivated. The exact words we use to describe the startup culture in St. Louis are the same ones we often attribute to our LaunchCoders. There’s no getting around the parallels that mirror the motivation and enthusiasm LaunchCoders and startups have for emerging technology. Another thing St. Louis…
CodeCamp Graduate: An Open Letter to Myself
What would it be like if you could travel back in time and talk to your past self before you had made life-changing decisions? Wouldn’t it be great to go back and encourage ourselves to trust others in certain situations, or empower ourselves to advocate for our worth, maybe even just give our past selves…
Hiring New Tech Talent with Sagitec
We recently got to catch up with one of our company partners, Sagitec, in Tampa Bay, Florida. Sagitec is a global technology company that delivers dynamic IT solutions to leading public and private organizations. Today, they provide innovative and continuously evolving benefits administration solutions to their clients that solve unique business problems and adapt to…
Fostering a Network of Opportunity Keeps Entrepreneurial Ecosystems Strong
Through no-charge tech training, LaunchCode is providing the skilled tech talent Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem needs to overcome its current growing pains.
Laugh! Cry. Be Moved… to Action!
Purchase your tickets now and join LaunchCode on Thursday, September 26th as we geek out over changing lives while building the St. Louis tech workforce.
Filling the Tech Talent Gap with Balto
LaunchCode recently spoke with Chris Knotes, the COO and one of the founders of Balto, a real-time speech analytics technology company based in St. Louis. Balto is a company partner to LaunchCode and has been filling their tech talent team with LaunchCoders since 2017. Tell us a little bit about your company: Founded in 2017,…
Commitment to Community Changes Lives and Companies
An international leader of aerospace innovation for over a century, Boeing has been breaking barriers in the sky, and now they’re paving pathways to tech careers for people with non-traditional credentials. Employing over 150,000 people globally, Boeing is committed to crafting teams with diverse skills, strengths, and perspectives. Through corporate practice and community partnerships, Boeing…
A Life-changing Experience
By Guillermo Zerpa, LC101 Graduate and Apprentice As a Venezuelan, leaving my family and country and becoming an immigrant was difficult, especially when trying to land a job in my specialty in a new country. Because the people are different, businesses are different, and hiring systems are different I had to start from zero. Even…
Best. CoderGirl. Ever.
Over the past five years, CoderGirl has transformed from a group of passionate women organizing a meetup to a full-fledged education and job placement program. It’s benefited from the hard work and dedication of countless fearless females, and as the program turns five, we’re so appreciative of all who have touched the program in some…
STL Grand Pride Parade: Walking the Walk With LaunchCode
LaunchCode’s diverse community is made up of people from all backgrounds and walks of life. A fundamental value of our organization is a commitment to celebrating our differences and championing all of our fellow techies. A Human Rights Campaign report found that 46% of LGBTQ+ employees in the United States hide their sexuality at their…
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