Tech Talent South is the go-to school for learning programming and web development in Atlanta. The two founders, Betsy Hauser Idilbi and Richard Simms, knew last year that the south had the talent to be on par with Silicon Valley programming, and decided to give potential southern programmers the opportunity to learn on their own terms.
But why should we at Hypepotamus try to describe what Tech Talent South does when these two self-proclaimed “chatter boxes” can explain their business better? Here’s your chance to read more about the original school for southern techies.
Your Pitch:
Tech Talent South’s mission is to grow tech talent in the Southeast and empower folks with the skills they need to drive innovation. We work with both children and adults and specialize in beginner-focused programs teaching computer programming, web development, and game development. Our kids coding bootcamps give children early exposure to computer programming and get them excited about what is possible with technology. Our intensive 8-week adult bootcamps prepare students for a career in web development and empower aspiring entrepreneurs with the skills they need to launch web-based businesses. Tech Talent South’s non-intimidating approach “demystifies” computer programming and teaches folks how to go from daydreaming to actually building solutions.
Owners:
Richard Simms
Betsy Hauser Idilbi
Location:
As an Atlanta native, Richard Simms likes to say he “lives and breathes” Atlanta. After spending several years working with tech startups in what are often considered more prominent tech cities (Chicago and D.C.), Richard started to get homesick. As he was planning his move back to Atlanta, Richard naturally started to survey the Atlanta tech scene and was thrilled to see how much activity and excitement was brewing. With Tech Talent South, Richard and Betsy want to do their part to put Atlanta on the map as the next great tech hub. Of course, a big part of that collective mission is growing the required tech talent right here in Atlanta. That’s where Tech Talent South comes in. Richard and Betsy hope to continue pushing awesome, hungry, passionate web developers out in the Atlanta community. What student will start the next big thing? What student will play an integral part in a local startup in its infancy? The possibilities are very exciting, and Richard and Betsy can’t wait to find out!
Employees:
10
Founded:
April 2013
Funded or bootstrapped:
Bootstrapped (all the way, baby!)
Price of Services:
Full-Time Code Immersion Program – $6,250
Part-Time Code Immersion Program – $4,250
Intro to Game Development Class – $850
What Customers Get:
In our Code Immersion Program, students go from beginner to being able to build and launch their own dynamic web applications. Students interested in pursuing a career in web development come out with a great foundation and are well position to pursue opportunities with local web development shops, startups, and more established companies. In the past, over 85% of our full-time students have had at least one job offer within two weeks of the program ending. Tech Talent South also has a soft spot and a passion for entrepreneurship and startups so, many of our students aren’t looking for jobs. They are looking to BUILD something and launch a web based business. Through our program, these students are able to not only learn the skills they need to build out their MVP (minimum viable product) and deploy it to the web but are also able to make strong connections within the Atlanta tech community that help them take their business to the next level.
Our Intro to Game Development class spans two weekends (all day each Saturday and Sunday). The class is beginner-focused and requires no previous tech or coding experience. Over the course of two weekends, students will learn the fundamentals of game development and actually be able to build out and deploy their very own game to the web. Topics covered in the class include developing custom behaviors and animation, scenery and character design, how to utilize physics engines, and more! For the gamers out there, what if instead of just playing games, you learned how to BUILD them?!
[Photo Credit: Tech Talent South]
