Investing in the Future: Urban Coders Guild Summer Coding Camps and Tulsa’s Tech Talent Pipeline
Tulsa is at a pivotal moment in its evolution as a national leader in innovation and technology. With its recent federal Tech Hub designation, the city is positioned to become a nucleus for emerging industries like artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and autonomous systems. Yet, the promise of this transformation depends on one critical factor: developing a diverse, skilled, and locally rooted tech workforce. Urban Coders Guild is helping meet that need—starting with Tulsa’s youth.
Our Summer 2025 Coding Camps at the University of Tulsa are more than seasonal enrichment opportunities. They are foundational components of a cradle-to-career talent pipeline designed to equip middle and high school students from underrepresented communities with the technical skills, confidence, and community support necessary to thrive in the digital economy.
Program Overview: Free, Full-Day, Project-Based Learning
Urban Coders Guild’s summer camps are free and accessible, serving middle and high school students of all experience levels. Running Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 4 PM, they offer a structured, supportive environment in which students learn through hands-on, project-based instruction.
Session 1: June 9 – 28 Designed to empower students through a more intensive curriculum, this session prepares participants for industry-recognized certifications in fields such as cybersecurity and web development.
Session 2: July 7 – 25 Centered around exploration, this session provides students with an introduction to coding and computer science fundamentals. It also serves as an intentional feeder into UCG’s academic-year programs, which begin in September.
Students may choose from four focus areas: Web Development, Game Development, Cybersecurity, and Intro to Python. All students receive breakfast, lunch, and snacks daily, and all are eligible to earn Urban Coders Guild digital skills badges—tangible credentials that affirm their progress and proficiency, regardless of whether they pursue formal certification exams.
📥 Apply now: https://form.typeform.com/to/lE6KJ4Om
A Strategic Component of Tulsa’s Tech Workforce Infrastructure
Urban Coders Guild’s summer camps are not standalone programs. They serve as the entry point into a comprehensive yearlong pathway that follows a proven educational model:
Explore (July–September): Exposure to new concepts, tools, and mindsets
Equip (October–March): Deeper skill development and specialization
Empower (April–June): Advanced study, leadership, certification, and industry engagement
This structured progression reflects Urban Coders Guild’s theory of change, which emphasizes the intersection of technical skill development, SEL (social-emotional learning), and STEM identity-building as key levers of long-term student success.
By integrating college credit, microcredentials, paid internships, teaching assistantships, and certification prep into our programming, UCG ensures that students do not simply learn to code—they build a resume, a professional network, and a sense of belonging in the tech ecosystem.
Centering Equity, Community, and Inclusion
Urban Coders Guild was founded on a single guiding principle: equity in access to opportunity. Our programs are intentionally designed for students who have historically been excluded from the tech sector—particularly Black, Latine, Indigenous, and female-identifying youth.
Free access eliminates the financial barriers often found in for-profit programs like Code Ninjas or iCode. Our culturally responsive curriculum embeds confidence, courage, comfort, community, and competency into every learning experience—principles that drive our students’ growth not just as coders, but as future leaders and innovators.
Through strategic partnerships with Tulsa Public Schools, Langston University-Tulsa, Black Tech Street, Impact Tulsa, Tulsa Innovation Labs, and others, UCG connects students to meaningful mentorship and career experiences while remaining embedded in the communities we serve.
Alignment with Tulsa’s Economic and Educational Priorities
UCG’s summer camps also serve as a critical workforce development asset for Tulsa. As the city leverages its Tech Hub designation to attract employers in AI, cybersecurity, and other high-growth sectors, programs like ours ensure that local, diverse youth are equipped to fill those jobs.
We align closely with:
The Oklahoma State Department of Education’s Computer Science Mandate
Local and regional economic development priorities
National trends calling for greater diversity in STEM fields
Students who begin with a UCG summer camp can go on to earn dual credit, pursue post-secondary degrees, or land entry-level jobs in tech, depending on their pathway of choice. Our work helps fulfill both educational equity and economic competitiveness for the Tulsa region.
Join Us in This Work
Urban Coders Guild’s summer programs are powered by partnerships. We invite school leaders, donors, employers, and community members to join us in shaping the next generation of Tulsa tech leaders.
Here’s how you can support:
Share the application with families and students today 👉 https://form.typeform.com/to/lE6KJ4Om
Sponsor meals, transportation, or stipends for students
Provide internship or mentorship opportunities
Invite us to present at your school or organization
Help us build the Best Buy Teen Tech Center in Tulsa
Every student who joins our summer camps represents not just a personal success story, but a step forward in building a more inclusive, sustainable, and resilient tech economy in Tulsa.
Investing in Tulsa’s Tech Future Starts Now
Urban Coders Guild’s summer coding camps are an investment in the future—of our youth, our city, and our tech workforce. They serve as the foundation of a yearlong pipeline that equips underrepresented students with the tools, support, and vision to succeed.
Together, we can make Tulsa not only a tech hub—but a model for inclusive innovation and equitable opportunity. Let’s shape the future. One student, one summer, one line of code at a time.
🌐 Learn more: www.urbancodersguild.org
📥 Student registration: https://form.typeform.com/to/lE6KJ4Om
