Dev Catalyst Celebrates Another Great Trip to San Francisco
What happens in San Francisco doesn’t stay there. It impacts students far beyond their four-day trip to Silicon Valley.
The journey to the grand prize destination began with students competing daily by staying alert in Dev Catalyst classes and sharpening their skills. This was all in the efforts of students from eighteen West Tennessee high schools and one Vermont high school to complete in the annual Dev Catalyst final coding project. Project winners were awarded the chance to participate in the annual San Francisco trip amongst other prizes. Winners were announced in the annual Dev Catalyst Awardaganza featuring CO:member, Jackson Escape Rooms’ owner, and CBS’s Hunted reality TV winner Lee Wilson. Though in years past students have enjoyed the trip, this year's adventure was remixed to even further enrich each student.
Our Jackson Home: Third Generation
Here at theCO, we're helping Jackson businesses get off on the right foot, and we're always inspired by those who have been doing it right for years. Havner's Frame Shoppe is an example of that, and today we share Josh Garcia's Our Jackson Home story on this local family business.
Member Spotlight: Kimberly Lovelady
Tell me a little about yourself.
I have a health and wellness consulting firm that helps people make small changes in order to improve their lifestyle. During my other time when I'm not busy, I am a mother to two lovely boys. One is in college . . . and my youngest is in middle school. I'm married. We are getting ready to be empty-nesters. . . . I volunteer all over the place.
Our Jackson Home: A West Tennessee Wedding
West Tennessee is full of some awesome event venues run by amazing people. Check out this Our Jackson Home guide by local photographer and CO.STARTERS graduate Kristi Woody on her top faves.
Made at theCO: Wooden Chess Set
This week’s Made at theCO is a simple guide on how to make a wooden chess set. Chess is one of the most played games on this planet. It comes in many shapes, sizes, and colors. However, there is something intriguing about a handcrafted chess board made out of wood that makes you want to play over and over again . . . even if you don’t really play chess (like me)!
Ben McCarver’s VEX Competition Experience
Ben McCarver found love at first sight after attending a robotics meetup at theCO last October.
Kabao McCarver, mother of Ben McCarver, took note of Ben’s interest in engineering from an early age.
“Ben was inclined to all things engineering from an early age. Before he could walk, he was trying to figure out how things fit together, mostly by first tearing them apart,” Kabao explained. “His involvement in robotics gave him the ability to express his interests in a new way.
“He kept the name, Ben the Destroyer, until a few years ago when it seemed like overnight he went from ‘breaking’ everything, and all of the sudden he was the one we called on to fix everything.”
Soon, after only days of robotics experience, Ben entered the VEX Robotics State Championship Competition held in Brentwood, Tennessee, against his mother’s wishes.
Dev Catalyst Student Wins Big for Women’s History Month
Maria McConkey is a student worth watching out for. Recognized by the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT), McConkey isn’t an ordinary Jackson Christian School (JCS) student. According to her teacher, she is extraordinary.