Program areas at Gaston Innovation Group
K-12 STEM Classes1,031 youth served in 2022 with K-12 STEMRowing & Robotics Summer Camp, June- July 20222 Video Game Design Camps, July and Aug 2022Robotics Classes and First Lego League Competition Classes, Jan through Dec 2022Sunday Coding Club classes, Jan through Dec 2022, both elementary and middle school youth classesDream Center Robotics Classes- after school program for underserved, 2 days per weekGrowth Entrepreneurial Mindset (GEM) Training, Jan through March 2022, middle school youth and a few adults. GEM combined with Robotics training starting April 2022. Summer Coding Camp in June 2022 for elementary school youthMIT Edgerton Flashlights Course, Oct 2022, ages 9-13 City of Belmont helped subsidize K-12 STEM and operational expenses with $330,000K from the NCDOC directed state grant.Charlotte SIM Grant funded $5K for K-12 STEM Courses
Various Adult Entrepreneurial and Tech Daily Courses193 adults served in 2022 with various courses and trainingMonthly Lunch & Learns for Entrepreneurs Drive Sales with Digital MarketingCybersecurity for Small BusinessDeal Desk Sessions with seasoned entrepreneurs/investors PMP Adult Certification Course in July 2022 for 12 Analytics Pathway- Excel, Etc (4 part series) City of Belmont helped subsidize the adult education, training, and operational expenses with $120,000K from the NCDOC directed state grant.
Pearson Vue Certification Testing CenterTechWorks is open to the public for certification testing approximately 4-5 days/week. It's the only public certification testing center in Gaston County. We have paid proctors who manage the testing center. 491 testers used the center in 2022.TechWorks Testing Center was closed from Feb 2022 through Aug 2022 for an infrastructure upgrade. The David Belk Canon Foundation provided a $25K grant to pay for the testing center upgrade and help subsidize the operating costs for the testing center.City of Belmont helped subsidize this County wide benefit, only available through TechWorks, with $50K from the NCDOC directed state grant.