Approximately 60 rising tenth, eleventh, twelfth grade and recent high school graduate students from 10 different counties and two states completed the five-day, four-night South Georgia Technical College Summer Bridge STEM camp to learn more about the educational and career opportunities available in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields. SGTC and Chattahoochee Flint RESA partnered to host the event with grant funding.
“This may be the single best high school recruiting event, South Georgia Technical College has ever hosted,” said SGTC President Dr. John Watford. “I have been amazed and inspired by each of these students and all of the activities they have participated in this past week. This has been a tremendous event and parents you have raised some awesome children and our future is in good hands.”
The Jet Tech Stem Camp kicked off on Sunday, July 12th and ended Thursday, July 16th with an impressive graduation ceremony in front of the STEM campers parents and family members. Each of the campers received a certificate in addition to a book titled “What do you do with a Chance?” The counselors and administrators wrote encouraging notes to each of the campers for their participation and fellow team members also signed each other’s books.
“The purpose of STEM or Science, Technology, Engineering and Math activities are to teach individuals to think and to discover more about the opportunities around them,” said Heidi Gooden of Chattahoochee-Flint RESA. “We also include the arts, so not only is this a STEM camp but it is also a STEAM camp. We hope we have imparted the love of this type of learning through this summer bridge camp that allows students to take part in the “complete college experience” while learning more about STEM and STEAM type careers.”
The students stayed on-campus in SGTC housing and ate three meals each day in the SGTC Dining Hall. The STEM campers and counselors were divided into four different teams –Accelerators, Gear Heads, Nitro, and Velocity.. The teams competed against each other in different games and competitions to earn bragging rights about STEM related activities. Nitro finished in first place at the end of the week and the Gear Heads were in second place.
The students were exposed to many of the over 200 programs of study on the SGTC campus including aviation maintenance, avionics, aircraft structural, medical and nursing programs, culinary arts, electrical construction, biology, RN, auto collision and repair, high performance engines, diesel technology, criminal justice, drafting, precision machining and manufacturing, air conditioning technology, sports and fitness, cosmetology, barbering, nail tech, cybersecurity, horticulture, electronics, and more.
Students enjoyed a wide array of activities each day under the supervision of SGTC and Chattahoochee Flint RESA administrators, faculty, and staff. SGTC Grant Coordinator Katrice Martin, SGTC Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs Josh Curtin, VP of Student Affairs Eulish Kinchens, VP of Academic Affairs Julie Partain, and SGTC VP of Institutional Advancement Su Ann Bird along with Chattahoochee Flint RESA’s Heidi Gooden and Tonya Barrett planned the event and coordinated with SGTC instructors and students to help highlight the different program areas. SGTC’s Macy Williams, Tylen Pepito, Charlene Williams, Melissa Hollis, and Peiare Adderley also worked with the campers.
SGTC President Dr. John Watford thanked the 2026 Stem Campers and their parents for taking advantage of the FREE Stem Camp opportunity that highlighted many of the hands-on learning educational programs and careers available at SGTC.