Geek Squad Academy

13 Jan: Want to Host a Geek Squad Academy? Now’s the Time to Apply

Geek Squad Academy, a Best Buy signature community outreach program, is now accepting applications from nonprofits, schools, libraries and other community groups to host free two-day tech camps for youth this year.

Together, we’ll teach thousands of additional kids across the country the tech skills they need to inspire future education and career choices. Read on for details.

As a partner, here’s what you can expect:

Passionate instructors – Our Geek Squad Agents and Blue Shirts are the tech experts.

By William Woodworth Company News Sustainability

28 Sep: Reflections from a Geek: A Decade of Inspiring Teens

In 2009, I was invited to join something new taking place in Des Moines, Iowa. Little did I know I would be part of something so transformative.

It was an early expansion of a Best Buy community program called Geek Squad Summer Academy, which taught technology skills to underserved youth across the country in the form of two-day camps. As a Geek Squad Agent, I led classes on computer hardware and programming basics, and our “campers” were Girl Scouts. Their passion for learning and discovery was tangible and exhilarating, and after the event ended, I could only think “I wish we had more.”

By Best Buy Community Relations Company News

19 Aug: Can You Build a Laptop? These Geek Squad Academy Kids Can

Curiosity, 90 minutes and a little help from adults were all it took for 300 students to build their own laptops during a Geek Squad Academy camp in Minneapolis this week.

The “Junior Agents” put together the Kano computer kits on Wednesday and programmed them on Thursday.

“This is the best thing I’ve ever seen in my life — a little keyboard that I get to keep,” said an 11-year-old named Devin. The laptops can do just about anything — from surfing the internet to playing games to word processing.

By Best Buy Community Relations Company News

15 Jul: HUD Secretary Julián Castro Marks First Anniversary of ConnectHome at Washington D.C.’s Best Buy Teen Tech Center

Bridging the digital divide has never been more fun for the 44 Washington, D.C.,-area youth who learned on Friday how to assemble computers for their personal use, thanks to the ConnectHome program, a White House initiative that is narrowing the digital divide for families in HUD-assisted housing.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro joined Best Buy and other ConnectHome organizations — including DC Housing Authority, GitHub, EveryoneOn and Kano — to celebrate the initiative’s one-year anniversary at the Best Buy Teen Tech Center in Washington, D.C.

By Suzanne Hilker Sustainability

30 Jun: Best Buy Releases 2016 Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Report

It was another banner year for Best Buy’s sustainability work. Today we released our 2016 Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability Report, in which we detail the many ways we positively impacted our communities. It’s where we explain our key social and environmental issues, the progress we’ve made during the year and our goals for the future.

Here are a few highlights:

Climate change was front and center. We attended the United Nations global climate negotiations (COP21), signed onto the American Business Act for Climate Change and reset our absolute carbon reduction goal to 45 percent by 2020.

By Best Buy Company News Geek Squad

22 Jun: Agent Started at a Geek Squad Academy, Now She Runs One

Six years ago, Victoria Bass was a 15-year-old student at a Geek Squad Academy camp in Louisiana, opening up a desktop computer for the first time and learning about the components inside.

Now, at age 22, she’s a full-fledged Geek Squad Agent, running her very own camp this week in New Orleans.

The excitement from that first experience learning the inner workings of a computer sparked a passion for technology that directly led to her education and career. Her story is just one example of the lasting impact Geek Squad Academy has had on youth over its 10 years of existence.

By Best Buy Community Relations Company News Sustainability

15 Jun: Geek Squad Academy Visits Tribal Nation for First Time

Best Buy’s Geek Squad Academy summer camp is visiting a tribal nation for the first time as part of the federal government’s ConnectHome initiative.

About 135 students between the ages of 10 and 18 are participating in the two-day camp this week (June 14-15) at Durant High School in Durant, Oklahoma, home of the Choctaw Indian Nation. They’re getting hands-on tech experience and learning 21^st-century skills that can make a difference in their future education and career choices.

By Best Buy Community Relations Company News PR News Alerts

28 Apr: Geek Squad Academy’s 10th Year of Summer Sessions Begin in May

Geek Squad Academy (GSA) is officially turning double digits! Entering its 10th year in 2016, GSA so far has inspired more than 30,000 kids from underserved communities to become the new generation of engineers, entrepreneurs, teachers, designers and dreamers.

The 2016 season kicks off on May 2 in Atlanta, Georgia, and will go coast-to-coast with more than 30 camps throughout summer and early fall. GSA works with local nonprofits and other organizations to provide much-needed technology education for students aged 10-18.

By Best Buy Community Relations Company News PR News Alerts Sustainability

17 Mar: Helping to Bridge the Nation’s Digital Divide in 2016

Despite incredible advances in technology to help Americans connect, interact and learn, more and more young people are being left behind as the digital divide persists.

Youth from underserved communities and lower-income families often lack access to tech tools like computers and Internet connections — along with training in how to use them. This creates a very real challenge for preparing the next generation of talent our country needs to compete and succeed in a global economy.

Best Buy is intensifying efforts this year to confront the technology gap through expanded programs that help underserved young people develop the skills they need to be successful in school and in their future careers.

By Best Buy Community Relations Company News

09 Mar: Teen Tech Week: Best Buy, Geek Squad Teach Web Skills

More than 500 teens across the United States are learning the finer points of building websites with the help of Best Buy and Geek Squad volunteers during Teen Tech Week.

The classes are happening at 27 libraries in 22 states through Saturday, March 12. This year’s theme for Teen Tech Week is “Create it at your library.”

Geek Squad Academy’s “Web-Know How” is the foundation for the classes. Topics covered include:

Making websites by manipulating code through hands-on and guided online activities.

By Best Buy Community Relations Company News PR News Alerts

12 Feb: Want to Host a Geek Squad Academy Camp? Apply Now

Best Buy is looking for nonprofits and other organizations who want to partner in giving youth the opportunities to develop tech skills that will inspire future education and career choices.

Groups are invited to submit an application to host a Geek Squad Academy camp this summer.

Now in its 10^th season, Geek Squad Academy from Best Buy partners with local organizations to expose students ages 10-18 to the latest technology in a fun, interactive setting. But this isn’t your average camp.

By Best Buy Community Relations Company News PR News Alerts

23 Sep: Best Buy and OurCycle LA Bridge Digital Divide for Los Angeles Families

The goal was bridging the digital gap for families, but the theme was empowerment at Dorsey High School in Los Angeles on Sept. 19.

Several families, with help from Best Buy employees, were trained on basic computer skills and went home with something they didn’t have before – Internet connectivity and a computer.

Best Buy partnered with OurCycle LA, a City of Los Angeles digital inclusion pilot program geared at providing free refurbished computers and training to low-income families in Los Angeles.

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