The Arkansas Coding Academy (ArCA) at the University of Central Arkansas will hold its 11th Demo Day on Friday, Nov. 8, from 1-3 p.m. at UCA Downtown located at 1105 West Oak Street in Conway. Graduates of the most recent full-time class will present their final projects as students before entering the information technology workforce as computer programmers.
Demo Day is an event that allows recent ArCA graduates to showcase their work to the community and potential employers. It serves as an opportunity for students to discuss their projects and network with the community as they prepare to enter the career field. The students are taught a wide range of software development tools that allow them to create a “full stack” web application. These tools include popular languages like Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Java and Structured Query Language (SQL).
The students’ final projects exhibit the skills they learned in class and allow them to demonstrate their abilities in a way aimed at intriguing potential employers. It also gives community members insight into what the program does for its students. Students select projects based on their interests, hobbies and prior work experience. Current students are working on projects like a League of Legends stats tracker, a Fantasy Football league website and an app that promotes safe recreation on the Arkansas River by providing data from the various dams and their release activity.
ArCA provides training and mentorship to students interested in information technology industries in Arkansas. It equips students with the skills needed to gain employment as entry-level coders and quickly become productive team members.
“Demo Day is the culmination of a lot of hard work, hands-on practice and expert instruction, said Don Walker, director of the ArCA. “It’s our students’ final exam and graduation ceremony combined. They gain invaluable experience demonstrating software they created, live and in person, and it gives employers a chance to get to know them and the skills they’ve learned during their time at the Coding Academy. Many of our past graduates kicked off their successful job searches through the professional contacts they made at Demo Day.”
Walker noted that the need for software development talent in central Arkansas continues to grow, and ArCA is helping to fill that need.
“I really enjoy working with local employers to shape our curriculum and help our graduates get hired,” said Walker, “and the relationships we’ve been able to build are invaluable.”
Some of the companies employing graduates include Merkle Inc., Southwest Power Pool, J.B. Hunt Transportation Services Inc., Acxiom, Metova Inc., Euronet, Ensono, USAble Life, SEAS Education, Team SI, DXC Technology and many others.
This event is open to current and future students, employers and the community. There is no fee to attend. For more information about Demo Day, email Walker at dwalker@uca.edu or call (501) 450-5276.
Established in 2016, the Arkansas Coding Academy (ArCA) strives to create a talent pipeline from the classroom to the workforce for individuals seeking careers in programming, information technology or software development.
ArCA is part of the Division of Outreach and Community Engagement at UCA and has partnerships with various organizations such as Acxiom, Merkle, Southwest Power Pool, the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services, Innovate Arkansas and a host of other companies across the state.
For ArCA enrollment information, visit arkansascodingacademy.com or email arcoding@uca.edu.
