EA’s Summer of STEAM
At EA, we believe that young people of all backgrounds should be inspired to explore the possibilities they could pursue in the world of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics). We’re passionate about helping the next generation develop the necessary skills and knowledge to pursue and succeed in a future career in STEAM .
The STEAM skills gap is a key issue that the EA Social Impact team continues to address, with a focus on under-represented groups, given that the gap is even wider for these populations.
That’s why this summer, we’ve been so pleased to continue to support and partner with some incredible organizations doing great work in this area.
Girls Who Code (US)
We were proud to partner the Girls Who Code Summer Immersion Program for the eighth consecutive year, this July. This is an incredibly important program that can be transformative for everyone who takes part. Not only are the team at Girls Who Code aiming to build the largest pipeline of future female engineers globally and to close the gender gap in tech, but they’re helping to spark meaningful change through their marketing and advocacy efforts.
This year, as part of the program, we were delighted to host over 60 students from all around the United States. Those who take part tend to join with zero to proficient background in computer science. Over the two weeks, they learned HTML, Javascript, CSS, Functions and Conditionals, and by the end of the program these new skills helped them to build a project and presentation and to create websites on topics such as climate change, immigration and mental health.
Over the past eight years, it’s been our privilege to support over 700 girls through Girls Who Code, many from historically underrepresented groups, through the program. And our relationship with the students often extends much further. We’ve hired 11 graduates from the program as interns, and recruited one as a full-time engineer. EA employees have also signed up to review young people’s resumes, via the partnership, offering feedback and guidance based on their own career experience.
EA is further strengthening its commitment to Girls Who Code with an investment of $100K per year for up to five years, to support their Oakland programming under the John Madden Legacy Commitment to Education Fund.
The fund supports programming for a number of nonprofit organizations focused on STEAM education, including Girls Who Code. These organizations are established and proven partners committed to equipping students confronting systemic barriers with the tech skills, mentoring and development support needed to succeed in college and beyond.
Digital Schoolhouse (UK)
Earlier this year, we also announced a new UK-based partnership with not-for-profit organization Digital Schoolhouse. The partnership saw us use the video game Knockout City, developed by Velan Studios as part of the EA Originals program, to explore what it takes to teach an AI to play dodgeball. The interactive workshops use online and offline activities to break down complex game mechanics into simple instructions. By the end of the session, each primary school student can use their experiences playing dodgeball to plan and create their own algorithms and put them to the test in-game. We also furthered our partnership with Digital Schoolhouse this July, by supporting their first ever Festival of Play, which took place in Manchester. The Festival of Play is a brand new creative careers and computing conference for students aged 8-15, which showcases the breadth and depth of roles available in the UK games industry and we were thrilled to be able to help bring this incredibly inspiring event to fruition.
EVERFI (US, Canada & UK)
We also recently announced that we would be building on our existing partnership with education technology company, EVERFI, which has been running in Canada and the US since 2016 and now extends to schools in the UK. The 2021 - 2022 Global “Play to Learn” Program benefitted almost 18,000 students across over 250 schools, encompassing more than 27,000 hours of learning. Through this partnership, we have co-developed modules which showcase STEAM skills through an engaging format that mirrors how these skills would be applied in a real-life Game Design Team.
Get in the Game (Orlando)
In Florida, EA Orlando’s “Get in the Game” STEAM annual summer camp, held at the new EA studio in downtown Orlando’s Creative Village, supported 12 high school students this year.
During the camp, designed for young women and non-binary students, participants are equipped with coding skills and exposed to real-world applications of STEAM in the video game industry, with coaching and mentorship from the software engineers and artists credited on iconic games such as EA SPORTS™ Madden NFL.
Each student is also guaranteed a college-level internship interview with EA, contingent upon completing the program, graduating from high school and enrolling in relevant college courses. To date, five past participants have secured internships at EA Orlando, and one is in a contract role, proving the success of this program as a model for talent development.
Latinitas Game Chicas (Austin)
The Latinitas Game Chicas Summer Camp, in Austin, is for girls and non-binary students aged 9-14. The summer camp is specifically focused on teaching students how to develop games. It was sponsored by SOMOS, the Hispanic / Latinx Employee Resource Group at EA. 13 EA volunteers across the US and Canada served as virtual guest speakers and provided mentoring during this year’s summer camp.
The Player’s Coalition (US)
EA is also proud to continue to support the Player’s Coalition, a non-profit founded by former NFL players Anquan Boldin and Malcolm Jenkins, dedicated to making an impact on social justice and racial equality, and Compudopt, an organization dedicated to providing technology to impacted students in the public school system, to help close the “digital divide” and ensure students are set up for success with access to computers to support their education.
Players Coalition, Compudopt and EA have continued to collaborate, to help to bridge the technology and resource gap in underinvested communities and schools around the country. To date, more than 420 computers have been given to students, while programming has been delivered to 27 students, 13 in “Early Adopters” and 14 in “STEAM TEAM”.
These partnerships remind us that video games are a powerful force for good and offer parents and teachers a creative vehicle to connect and engage with kids who might not otherwise consider exploring a career in STEAM. They are also an important step in empowering the young people taking part with the skills they need to thrive in a digital economy and we couldn’t be prouder to be playing a small part in their journey to future success.
Luis Maes
Head, Global Social Impact
