Summer PitchDIA camp engaged and challenged students

Aug. 22—This summer's PitchDIA (Dalton Innovation Accelerator) camp was "fun, educational and all about building," said camper Birdie Barrell. "I really feel every kid likes building."

The local PitchDIA is modeled on the popular television show "Shark Tank." Entrepreneurs pitch their ideas to business leaders who select the winner.

The camp "puts you in the mindset of an actual architect, (because) it's about how to build and think it through," said Asher Lashley, a sixth-grader at North Whitfield Middle School. "I'd do this every day if I could."

"I've liked the group activities very much," said fifth-grader Luke Collins. "Time has passed really quickly."

Jameson Keith was amazed the camp was "free," said the sixth-grader at North Whitfield Middle School. "There are lots of professionals here, and it's a quality opportunity."

Lashley is glad the camp is free, because "it gives all kids a chance to do this," he said. "I'm usually bored at home," but the camp engaged him.

School can be "boring, but this is fun, because they teach in a fun way," said Caleb Bagley, who would like to become an engineer. "You meet new people and learn new things to put your mind to use."

"It's better than sitting around all day during the summer, and it's made us better at taking notes," Collins said. Students learned "how to put our ideas together."

Campers had to overcome adversity, and "it's good to go through that," Barrell said. "When things are hard, you just have to get through those hard times."

Brylee Curtis discovered how to thrive under deadline pressure, which "we don't know about (typically), because we're kids," she said. "I always felt in a time crunch, and it's good to experience that stress."

Ansley Hart came to the camp because she wants to launch her own business, and she has three ideas, including the Bake My Day bakery, said the fifth-grader at Westwood School. "I can learn how it's done and create new things."

Bagley loved his teammates, said the sixth-grader at North Whitfield Middle School. "I'd do this 1,000 times more with this group."

Rising fifth- to eighth-graders from schools around the region were tasked with tackling one of three problems presented at the camp, held at the Junior Achievement Discovery Center of Greater Dalton, said Lauren Holverson, executive director of the Dalton Innovation Accelerator at the Greater Dalton Chamber of Commerce. Prompts were making the downtown Farmers Market more family friendly, repurposing Dalton's alleyways to be more useful for the community and designing shelf space for small retailers that would be more attractive to potential customers.

Curtis and her group were unanimous in opting for the third choice, as "it seemed like the most fun option," she said. They created a "honeycomb" with a bee theme, with various products in different sections of the comb for the window of the Green Door General Store.

Alleyways can be "bland, sketchy and not that safe," said Collins, who lives in Dalton but attends school in Chattanooga. "We want to make them better."

Features of their group's prototype included a skybridge between buildings and an elevator for accessibility for all, such as people with disabilities, said Lashley. The lounge area is ideal for people to escape the elements and "chill out" on a hot day or warm up on a cold day.

Their alley would also have a map of the city and a QR code that could be scanned to bring up an interactive map with additional details, he said. The area would include a vending machine to purchase snacks and/or beverages, and people could rent longboards to travel the city.

Making and keeping the alleyway pedestrian friendly was also a focus, said Keith. For example, their prototype featured an alarm to alert pedestrians if and when emergency vehicles need to pass through the alley.

Students pitched their ideas to a panel of local leaders on the camp's final afternoon, Holverson said. The PitchDIA camp led into the Next camp later the same week, a new camp this year that "really gets into the nitty-gritty of operating a business."

"The students are having a blast, and they're super competitive," Holverson said. "I'm really impressed with the quality of their work and how confident they are pitching their ideas."