{"290331":{"#nid":"290331","#data":{"type":"news","title":"CEISMC Camps Keep Burch Busy Year Round","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ESummer camps. Most of us only think about them when it\u2019s time to sign the kids up. But not Andrew Burch \u2014 he thinks about summer camps all year long.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThat\u2019s because Burch oversees Georgia Tech\u2019s \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ceismc.gatech.edu\u0022\u003ECenter for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics, and Computing (CEISMC)\u003C\/a\u003E summer camps for kids.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI love seeing kids who weren\u2019t even thinking about coming to college attend one of our camps and get to do something like build a robot to push a ball,\u201d said Burch, who is education outreach manager. \u201cBy the end of the week, they\u2019re talking about coming to Georgia Tech. It\u2019s one of my favorite parts of the job.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBurch, who earned his bachelor\u2019s in 2008 from what is now \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EScheller College of Business\u003C\/a\u003E, started his career working for Guided Discoveries, a nonprofit educational organization that specializes in astronomy, physics, and outdoor education field trips and summer camps in California.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI worked with kids who were in the fourth through ninth grade, teaching them about everything from astronomy to mountain biking,\u201d he said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAfter working at Guided Discoveries for three years, he randomly came across the opening for his current position and applied.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cHow could I not apply?\u201d Burch said. \u201cI\u2019m from Macon and went to Tech, so moving back to Atlanta was like coming home.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERead on to learn more about Burch and his time at Tech.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat did you want to be when you were a child?\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003EIt changed regularly. First it was an astronaut, then the president, then a fireman, and after one particular incident with my brother and a face plant on the pavement, a plastic surgeon.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETell us about the CEISMC summer camps.\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003EWe offer 28 programs, with some being based in the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/cos.gatech.edu\u0022\u003ECollege of Sciences\u003C\/a\u003E (which is where CEISMC is based) and others being led by colleges and schools across campus. Camp themes range from game development to designing buildings. Most camps last for a week (with some being offered multiple times throughout the summer) and cater to students ranging from elementary to high school. There are about 20-25 students enrolled in each camp.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat\u2019s an average day in your job like?\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003EI am coordinating with people across campus to figure out the logistics \u2014 which includes everything from approving new camps to figuring out where participants will eat lunch every day. I also field a lot of calls and emails from parents with questions.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat is one professional accomplishment you\u2019re most proud of?\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003EActually, I have two. The first is growing the CEISMC programs. When I started, we were serving about 800 students. Now, that number has increased to about 1,800. Also, we\u2019ve been able to increase the amount of financial aid we can offer to families who might not be able to pay the camp tuition. Last year, we were able to offer about 80 scholarships.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EIf someone would like to submit a camp topic, how would they go about it?\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003EIf you\u2019d like to suggest a camp focus related to your field, just reach out to me. I\u2019m always looking for ideas from students, faculty, and staff. We love being able to tie in research being done at Tech to programs for kids to see. The key is that if you want to be involved in one of the CEISMC programs, you need to be able to communicate the information \u2014 as technical as it may be \u2014 to anyone from college age to elementary school age.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhere is your favorite spot on campus?\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003EThe \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/clough.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EClough Commons\u003C\/a\u003E rooftop garden, this is such a neat green space. The kids are always amazed that there are a bunch of trees up there.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EIf you could have dinner with one person, dead or alive, who would it be?\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003EBill Murray, because he would have to have some amazing stories. I imagine it would turn into quite the entertaining experience.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat is the greatest risk you ever took?\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003ENot going to work at a financial planning firm and going to California to accept the Guided Discoveries job instead. And I think I\u2019m a lot happier for it.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhere is your favorite place to eat lunch?\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003ERay\u2019s New York Pizza. Try the buffalo chicken salad \u2014 I actually influenced its creation, the old manager joked about naming it after me.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETell us something unique about yourself.\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003Cbr \/\u003EI ran my first marathon in November and am now working to qualify for the Boston Marathon.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI love seeing kids who weren\u2019t even thinking about coming to college attend one of our camps and get to do something like build a robot to push a ball,\u201d said Burch, who is education outreach manager. \u201cBy the end of the week, they\u2019re talking about coming to Georgia Tech. It\u2019s one of my favorite parts of the job.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Burch oversees Georgia Tech\u2019s Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics, and Computing (CEISMC) summer camps for kids"}],"uid":"27299","created_gmt":"2014-04-14 10:41:50","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:16:15","author":"Michael Hagearty","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2014-04-14T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2014-04-14T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"290341":{"id":"290341","type":"image","title":"Andrew Burch","body":null,"created":"1449244274","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 15:51:14","changed":"1475894986","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:49:46","alt":"Andrew Burch","file":{"fid":"199217","name":"burch.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/burch_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/burch_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":182789,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/burch_0.jpg?itok=EF1LTOBv"}}},"media_ids":["290341"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.ceismc.gatech.edu\/summerprograms","title":"CEISMC Summer P.E.A.K.S. 2014"},{"url":"https:\/\/kidsclub-ceismc.gatech.edu","title":"K.I.D.S. Club"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"411","name":"CEISMC"},{"id":"171330","name":"staff profile"},{"id":"167366","name":"summer camps"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:andrew.burch@ceismc.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EAndrew Burch\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003ECEISMC\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}