Announcements

Please note, the 2024 BAM Summer Mentorship Program has ended. This page remains accessible for historical reference purposes only.

Week 4 Announcement

Jul 26 · 3 min read

ATLA

Week 3 was filled with amazing workshops at the Microsoft Charlotte office, an informative field trip to Ally, and a jam packed virtual Thursday with plenty of learning. But now, the last airbender week of the program is upon us! Read on to see what’s in store for Week 4.

Tuesday 7/30

10 AM - 3 PM in-person at the Microsoft Charlotte Office - 8050 Microsoft Way, Charlotte, NC 28273. Bring your badge, laptop, and a backpack to carry any other items you’d like to bring. Most importantly, dress business casual! We’re going to have a professional photographer take headshots of all students. In addition to the headshots, we’ll be continuing our coding education, learning about the gaming industry, and reviewing our LinkedIn learnings from last week!

Wednesday 7/31

We’ll be taking a field trip to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. UNC Charlotte is one of the leading education institutions in the Charlotte area boasting a beautiful campus alongside excellent academic offerings, particularly in Data Science. Our visit will center on giving you an inside look at the college experience!

  • Where: UNC Charlotte, specifically meet at the Gage Undergraduate Admissions Center - 8910 Johnson Alumni Way, Charlotte, NC 28262.
  • When: 10 AM – 3 PM
  • What to Bring: Nothing but your best selves! Feel free to bring a backpack if you’d like, but there are no specific items you need to bring to the field trip.
  • What to Wear: Casual attire. We will be walking outside during our tour of campus so please dress accordingly. Check the weather forecast!
  • Lunch: Covered by Microsoft at UNC Charlotte’s dining hall.
  • Transportation: If you are using our Uber program, you will Uber directly to the field trip location and back home once the event concludes. If you are not using Uber, please have your parents drop you off at 10 AM and pick you up at 3 PM. If you’re driving, see below for additional information.
    • Parking Garage Address: Park in the Admissions Lot at 8904 Johnson Alumni Way, Charlotte, NC 28223.
    • Parking Info: This deck is right by the Gage Undergraduate Admissions Center, which is where we’ll meet to start the day. Take a parking ticket on the way in, and be sure to have it validated by the front desk staff at the Admissions Center before leaving. Don’t pay for parking! If you’re not sure on how to get validation, grab a Microsoft chaperone for help.
  • Chaperones: These are the Microsoft chaperones for the field trip. Please feel free to call or text them the day of the field trip with any questions or concerns.
    • Chemere Davis: 336-253-5268
    • Segun Akinyemi: 618-616-1285

Thursday 8/1

This will be the last day of the program, running from 10 AM - 3 PM in-person at the Microsoft Charlotte Office - 8050 Microsoft Way, Charlotte, NC 28273. We’ll have our final group coding challenge (with the winning team receiving prizes), some review of how you can stay connected with Microsoft, and a final fun activity to send things off.

Week 3 Announcement

Jul 19 · 2 min read

InsideOut

Cheers to an awesome Week 2! We had insightful and inspiring field trips to Honeywell and GM alongside a fun day of in-person learning at the Microsoft Charlotte Office. Read on to see what’s in store for Week 3!

Tuesday 7/23

10 AM - 3 PM in-person at the Microsoft Charlotte Office - 8050 Microsoft Way, Charlotte, NC 28273. Bring your badge, laptop, and a backpack to carry any other items you’d like to bring. We’ll have several workshops from Microsoft employees alongside continued exploration of the Python programming language.

Wednesday 7/24

We’ll be taking a field trip to Ally Bank, specifically the Ally Charlotte Center at 601 S Tryon St, Charlotte, NC 28202. Ally is a leading digital financial services company known for its innovative approach to banking and finance. During our visit, you’ll get a chance to explore their state-of-the-art facilities and learn about the technologies they use to provide seamless financial solutions.

Ally Trip Details

  • Where: Ally Charlotte Center at 601 S Tryon St, Charlotte, NC 28202.
  • When: 10 AM – 3 PM
  • What to Bring: Nothing but your best selves! Feel free to bring a backpack if you’d like, but there are no specific items you need to bring to the field trip.
  • What to Wear: Casual attire (within reason).
  • Lunch: Provided by Ally.
  • Transportation: If you are using our Uber program, you will Uber directly to the field trip location and back home once the event concludes. If you are not using Uber, please have your parents drop you off at 10 AM and pick you up at 3 PM. If you’re driving, see below for additional information.
    • Parking Garage Address: Ally Parking Deck at 122 E Brooklyn Vlg Ave, Charlotte, NC 28202.
    • Parking Info: This deck is right next to the Ally Charlotte Center. Take a parking ticket on the way in, and be sure to grab a Microsoft chaperone to ensure your parking is validated before leaving.
  • Chaperones: These are the Microsoft chaperones for the field trip. Please feel free to call or text them the day of the field trip with any questions or concerns.
    • Jonathan Lindsay: 704-968-4123
    • Dominique Greatheart: 475-434-7941

Thursday 7/25

This will be our first official virtual day of the program. At 10 AM, please log onto your Microsoft-provided laptops and open your Outlook email and Microsoft Teams. You will receive a link via email and chat to join a call where we will share information and provide instructions for the day’s activities. The schedule remains the same, from 10 AM to 3 PM, but conducted virtually!

Week 2 Announcement

Jul 16 · 4 min read

Hello students! We hope you enjoyed Week 1, we have some fun times ahead for the rest of Week 2. Here are key details about our engagements this week (7/16 - 7/17).

Tuesday 7/16

10 AM - 3 PM in-person at the Microsoft Charlotte Office - 8050 Microsoft Way, Charlotte, NC 28273.

Wednesday 7/17

We’ll be taking a field trip to Honeywell, one of the world’s leading technology and manufacturing companies. Honeywell specializes in a wide range of industries, including aerospace, building technologies, and performance materials. This visit will provide a unique opportunity to see cutting-edge technology and innovation in action. Also, Honeywell’s rumored to have one of the coolest corporate offices in the Charlotte area, so it should be a fun trip!

Honeywell Trip Details

  • Where: 855 S Mint St, Charlotte, NC 28202.
  • When: 10 AM – 3 PM
  • What to Bring: Nothing but your best selves! Feel free to bring a backpack if you’d like, but there are no specific items you need to bring to the field trip.
  • What to Wear: Casual attire (within reason).
  • Building Access: Security’s tight at Honeywell’s office, and as such, they’re requiring visitors to scan a QR code for entry. Please reach out to a program team member to receive the QR code for entry.
  • Lunch: Provided by Honeywell.
  • Parking: If you’re driving, here’s information about parking.
    • Parking Garage Address: Legacy Union Seven20 Garage at 720 S Church St, Charlotte, NC 28202
    • Parking Info: This deck is attached to Honeywell’s internal parking deck. Please pull a parking ticket upon entry. The Honeywell Concierges desk will issue you a parking validation upon request when you leave. When you enter the parking deck via 720 S Church St., stay to the left and pull straight ahead into Honeywell’s P3 visitor’s deck. If the P3 gate is lowered, please push the button on the call box and security will let you in.
  • Chaperones: These are the Microsoft chaperones for the field trip. Please feel free to call or text them the day of the field trip with any questions or concerns.
    • Segun Akinyemi: 618-616-1285
    • Jonathan Lindsay: 704-968-4123
    • Imani Ricks: 336-416-9266

Thursday 7/18

To make up for last week’s cancellation of Thursday engagement, we’ll be taking a special field trip to the General Motors (GM) Charlotte Technical Center. GM is one of the world’s largest and most influential automobile manufacturers. This visit will offer a firsthand look at their state-of-the-art automotive engineering and production processes. Furthermore, the GM Charlotte Technical Center is a big part of NASCAR’s operations in the area when it comes to designing, testing, and training drivers on vehicles. At least one member of the planning team has visited the site before, and they have nothing but great things to say about how impressive the building is. It’ll be a blast!

Importantly, before the field trip, please scan the QR code below to watch a mandatory safety video about GM’s facilities (you must do this!).

GMSafetyVideoQRCode

GM Trip Details

  • Where: 7605 GM One Team Dr NW Concord, NC 28027.
  • When: 10 AM – 3 PM.
  • What to Bring: Nothing but your best selves! Feel free to bring a backpack if you’d like, but there are no specific items you need to bring to the field trip.
  • What to Wear: Casual attire, but specifically no open-toed shoes, ripped jeans, shorts, or the like, as we’ll be in a factory environment.
  • Lunch: Provided by GM.
  • Transportation: Concord is a bit far for some, so we’re offering transportation for all students. Meet at the Microsoft Charlotte office at 9 AM if you’d like to ride with the program leads to the event. This includes students using our Uber ridesharing program. If you’re using Uber, make sure to Uber to the Microsoft Charlotte office and arrive by 9 AM. Do not Uber directly to the GM site in Concord. We will go to GM as a group from the office. After the field trip, we’ll cover getting all student’s home. If you already live in the Concord area or prefer to be driven by your parents (or yourself), please meet us at GM at 10 AM.
  • Parking: If you’re driving, the site has a free parking lot right in front of the building. No validation required. Park in any spot.
  • Chaperones: These are the Microsoft chaperones for the field trip. Please feel free to call or text them the day of the field trip with any questions or concerns.
    • Segun Akinyemi: 618-616-1285
    • Jonathan Lindsay: 704-968-4123
    • Imani Ricks: 336-416-9266

Final Thoughts

As always, feel free to email us at bsmpncmoms@microsoft.com with any questions, and be sure to actively check your program email. We look forward to seeing you all the rest of this week!