High schoolers get creative at college’s free tech program – News – Panama City News Herald

Chipley-based Florida Panhandle Technical College marks successful summer program for area high school students.

CHIPLEY — High school students learned to produce TV spots, shoot photos and video, record music and fly drones during the 2019 Summer Creative Sessions, a free six-week program at Florida Panhandle Technical College.

The inaugural sessions mixed inquisitive students in grades 9-12 with the newest technology and a healthy dose of fun.

“I didn’t know what to expect, but I was excited to find out that we would fly drones, learn the basics of photography, and shoot video and audio for a TV commercial,” 16-year-old Dalton Eastling of Vernon High School said when he received his Certificate of Completion from the program.

According to a news release from the college, FPTC provided a wide variety of technical opportunities for creativity — from drone technology to professional quality photography in a studio environment, and from writing and producing a television commercial to recording vocals and instruments in a sound studio. Students also shot photos and video clips at Falling Waters State Park. The sessions were sponsored by Florida Panhandle Technical College Foundation and a grant from Wells Fargo Bank.

“We were fortunate to have a group of very bright individuals in this summer’s class,” instructor Paul Goulding said in the news release.

FPTC Director Martha Compton added, “We are proud of our students, and we are proud to be a part of these students’ lives.”

Participants are students from Bonifay, Vernon, Graceville, Bethlehem, Cottondale and Chipley. For six weeks, they had classes each Monday to study drone technology, principles of photography, video and audio production, music and social media — all at no cost.

Compton said the program was a response to numerous inquiries about these sorts of classes.

“This series of classes allows us to expose this age group to new technologies, with the hope that they will see job opportunities in their futures,” Compton said. “This was not a summer baby-sitting offering.”

While the program was offered free to participating students, it was not free to execute. Compton said students with a real desire to explore these technologies were encouraged to attend, and the partnership between the school board, corporate entities and business community partners made it possible.

For more information about Florida Panhandle Technical College, 757 Hoyt St. in Chipley, and the programs offered, visit www.FPTC.edu or call 850-638-1180. Programs include welding, electrical, multimedia design, medical administrative assistant, cosmetology, IT, cyber security and networking, nursing, drafting, law enforcement and public safety.