The more society enters into a digital world, the more it needs classes that teach and jobs that produce coding, the digital DNA, for those programs.
Code is at the heart of new units like artificial intelligence, and companies that produce games that require massive amounts of code, like sports title video game producer Electronic Arts, will need students ready to hit the ground coding, armed with that technical knowledge.
Lily George, who entered her senior year this week at NeoCity Academy, was one of 20 area students selected for EA’s Get in the Game STEAM Camp in July at its downtown Orlando’s Creative Village studios.
George is in the cybersecurity track at NeoCity, so AI is becoming a popular topic.
“Coding has become a recent interest,” she said. “This seemed like it would be like a coding camp where you’d come away with a free computer, so when one of my teachers let me know about it I applied.”
The program is familiar to Osceola County students. Two years ago, EA offered the camp to 16 females, and four Osceola students were chosen. The 2026 program drew more than 100 applicants from more than 30 local schools from which George was picked, Electronic Arts said. Students were selected by a volunteer-committee of EA professionals based on STEAM coursework, extracurricular experience, project samples, and essays reflecting a passion for careers in the industry.
Over the course of the week, George and her cohorts received coding lessons led by Ron Weaver, technical design director at the Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy (FIEA) at the University of Central Florida and received coaching and mentorship from EA team member volunteers. Workshops and demonstrations led by EA team members offered a behind-the-scenes look at EA’s technology and the creative processes behind fan-favorite EA SPORTS titles like the NCAA Football game and Madden NFL, the popular game named after former coach and TV commentator John Madden that’s been a staple of console and PC sports game players for decades.
While she admitted to being more a fan of game titles like Skyrim and Fallout than EA’s sports labels, George said the camp definitely furthered her interest in programming.
“I found myself enjoying that, along with learning the importance of sharing work and files with a team,” she said, noting groups at the camp had to design a game in order to receive the certificate of completion.
Working in C-Sharp, a language similar to Java, George and her team created a game she called, “Like an escape from an Ikea with a monster at the end.”
“We had the idea, then we broke it down into small parts,” she said. “I would definitely recommend the experience, especially for those who are interested in designing games.”
