Grand Circus and Great Lakes Observing System Announce Partnership To Enhance Coding Bootcamps With Real-Time Environmental Data

DETROIT, July 29, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Grand Circus and the Great Lakes Observing System (GLOS) today announced that the two organizations will partner to incorporate live environmental data into the coding academy's training programs. Grand Circus students will now have access to many types of data managed by the Ann Arbor-based binational nonprofit, which collects, manages, and shares key data sets that support science, policy, management, and industry in the Great Lakes.

This partnership comes as the Great Lakes region is experiencing record water temperatures, with some lake surfaces measuring 80 degrees Fahrenheit in July. The protection and sustainability of the Great Lakes is critical to the economic and ecological health of Michigan and other midwestern states, as well as Canada. GLOS has been assembling data in and around the Great Lakes to make datasets available to a multitude of stakeholders, including researchers, government officials, boaters, anglers, homeowners and the general public.

"One of our main goals is to get critical, real-time information into as many hands as possible so people can understand the water and make better decisions," said Kelli Paige, GLOS CEO, "and we are excited to see what the innovative students at Grand Circus will create."

Grand Circus bootcamp students will use data managed by GLOS to enrich their final projects. Students will be encouraged to build dashboards, mobile and web applications with these unique and real-time datasets, highlighting their power to inform policy and action to address climate change and other environmental concerns. Students will also meet with the GLOS team to better understand the organization's mission and data. The first Grand Circus students to interact with GLOS data will begin their bootcamp this month.

"When students have the opportunity to work with actual data to meet a real-world need, they deepen their bootcamp experience," says Peter Guenther, Director of Learning at Grand Circus. "We're so grateful for this partnership with GLOS for the chance to enrich our students' experience and help them build important professional development skills."

Grand Circus has been operating in Michigan since 2013 with a focus on training students from all backgrounds and experience levels for high-impact careers in technology. These graduates join a network of 1,700+ alumni and 350+ employers, the largest tech community of its kind in Michigan. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, all Grand Circus courses are remote hosted with local instructors.

"Real-world data makes a difference for students. It puts the possibilities of a coding career into context," says Damien Rocchi, CEO and Co-founder of Grand Circus. "As a Michigan-based company, we join with GLOS in recognition that the health of the Great Lakes is paramount to the health of our state, economy, and future. Through this partnership, students will have the opportunity to not only learn and earn a new career but to make a significant difference in their world and their environment through technology."

For more information on Grand Circus, please visit grandcircus.co.

For more information on the Great Lakes Observing System, please visit glos.org.

About GLOS

The Great Lakes Observing System (GLOS) provides end-to-end data services that support science, policy, management, and industry in the Great Lakes.

A binational nonprofit, GLOS aims to enable easy access to the real-time and historical lake data that the people of the region need.

By taking a user-oriented approach to organizing the technologies, people, and processes involved in monitoring the Great Lakes, GLOS is building a system where data is sharable and interoperable so that our immensely valuable freshwater resources can be better managed and more fully understood.

For more information, visit glos.org.

About Grand Circus

Grand Circus is a learning institute that teaches high-demand technology skills and connects the region's employers to exceptional talent. Our 12-and 26-week software developer bootcamps produce graduates with the latest technical knowledge and soft skills required to thrive in the region's growing tech sector. We also offer advanced workshops and both reskilling and upskilling solutions for companies of all sizes.

Since launching in 2013, Grand Circus has maintained strong partnerships with big tech and local government entities to ensure that our students are receiving the latest and most advanced training. To date, more than 1,700 bootcamp graduates now work at over 350 companies across the region.

We also champion a variety of initiatives to advance our mission of making a tech career universally accessible. Grand Circus is one of ten Google for Startup North America tech hubs and partners with Facebook, Detroit at Work, TekSystems, the Grand Rapids SmartZone and Detroit Employment Solutions Corporation to provide a mix of funding and high-impact programming.  For more information, visit www.grandcircus.co.

SOURCE Grand Circus

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