Code 313 is a Detroit, MI-based nonprofit organization that provides hands-on educational training to disadvantaged youth in the use of cutting-edge technology.  Most of the time Code 313 helps kids purchase inexpensive computers, then helps them to become computer-literate.  But this past Labor Day, the group took on another IT training challenge:  drones.

Working in partnership with Newlab, a massive new technology center based at Detroit’s Michigan Central Station, Code 313 provided youths aged 7-17 with hands-on demonstrations of new UAV technologies and their applications to various commercial industries.  Participants learned the details of aerial mapping missions and 3-D photogrammetry and witnessed drones navigating a fight obstacle course. All of the attendees also had an opportunity to fly a drone and to learn about safety issues before going airborne  themselves.

Bartel Welch, Code 313’s founder, said the group’s event was intended to encourage Detroit-area youth to think about career opportunities in the nation’s fast-growing drone industry.

In addition to the hands-on workshops, the event featured information stations where specific roles and missions for drones were discussed.   At one such station, participants learned how drones were being used to collect water samples to test for the presence of bacteria and other contaminants.  Instead of deploying a boat crew to collect samples by hand, a drone could be flown to a body of water, and a special device lowered to gather the samples remotely.  Time and cost savings would be substantial, and the entire operation would leave virtually no carbon footprint.

Other stations illustrated how the use of drone videography was transforming the entertainment industry and how enhanced aerial surveillance and mapping was improving productivity and safety in agriculture, mining and construction.   A final station looked at the technologies for synchronization that were making drone light shows possible.

Ten-year old Richard Kiel was one of the 150 participants at the recent event.  He told the Detroit Free Press he’d crashed – and demolished – the first drone his father bought him as a birthday present.  When he heard about the Labor Day workshops, and the opportunities for professional hands-on training, he was eager to attend.

For most of the participants, Code 313’s event was their first real exposure to UAVs.  Unlike Kiel, most had never seen a drone up close, let alone tried to fly one.  A career in the drone industry?  That’s too much for a child still in grade school to consider.  For many, drones are just a “cool” new hobby.

“Today is about getting them curious,” Carolina Pluszczynski, COO of Michigan Central, told the Free Press. “It’s about exposing them to drones, demystifying drones for parents and kids and just getting them excited.”

Code 313 is not alone in developing drone awareness programs for underserved youth.  Baltimore, Washington, DC and other US cities have sponsored similar events.  DroneLegends and Droneversity sponsor week-long summer camps to stimulate interest in STEM-based education, and a growing number of U.S. high schools are incorporating drones into their curricula.