Informatics camp ‘tons of fun’ for students

On the morning of June 15, 36 people packed themselves into the School of Informatics presentation room for their last day of summer camp. \nThe summer camp ran June 10 through June 15 and was sponsored by the School of Informatics, School of Education, John Deere Corporation and the Pervasive Technology Labs. \nBailey Miller, a high school junior from North Carolina, said he met School of Informatics Director of Undergraduate Recruitment Beth Terrell at a college fair in Charlotte, N.C., and knew he wanted to come to IU to study informatics. \nMiller attended the School of Informatics summer camp last summer and said he plans to attend every summer until he enrolls at IU. \n“It’s tons of fun and you learn a lot of stuff,” Miller said. “And if you’re not interested in computers, you will be.” \nThe students were housed in McNutt Quad for the week and attended classes from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. They had three or four interactive classes a day. Classes were on topics such as computer graphics, computer system design, bioinformatics and Web site design. After 5 p.m., students worked on projects, played Wii, went bowling or just hung out. \nGregory Power, a high school senior, decided to go to the summer camp because he’s interested in computers and his aunt is a professor at the School of Informatics. Power said he enjoyed the experience, and he would suggest the camp to other students interested in informatics. \nAbby Stanhouse, a junior in high school, said she heard about the summer camp from the announcements at her school. Her father also wanted her to attend camp, and she said she ended up liking it. \n“I think even if they’re not loving computers, it’s good to explore,” Stanhouse said of those who attend the camp. \nStanhouse said one of the best experiences at the camp was meeting the different types of people who were there and getting to know them. \nAt 11 a.m. on the last day, students moved into the computer lab at the School of Informatics and played “Counter-Strike,” a computer game in which the player shoots other players and waited for their parents to pick them up. \nTerrell said they had their largest group of students this summer, and all the students seemed to mesh well together. Every year they hand out student surveys to help improve the camp for the following summer to make it more focused, she said. \n“When students talk about wanting to come back, that means success,” Terrell said.