Dr. Krish Pillai helps a student during LHU's 2010 summer video game design workshop.

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - The Lock Haven University Department of Business Administration, Computer Science and Information Technology is offering a workshop on Video Game Design this summer, June 20 – 24, for students attending middle school, 6th- 8th grades. Students about to start 6th grade or leaving 8th grade are also welcome to participate.
The workshop runs from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., with a one-hour break for lunch in Bentley Hall. Students will be chaperoned to and from class.
The week-long workshop is designed for beginner/intermediate level students with middle-school background in math and science. The workshop will appeal to students who would like to learn more about writing video games, those who plan to have a career in computer science, and anyone who is just plain curious. Students are not expected to have any programming skills to attend this workshop, but by the end of the week, students will have learned concepts of graphic programming.
Students will work on computers in the Penguin Lab. The Penguin Lab is an advanced UNIX Lab administered by students and faculty. The Penguin Lab consists of eighteen computers that are served by two very powerful computer servers named Chilly and Willy. Together they work as a team called Chilly-Willy.
During the workshop, students will create their own video games. They will become familiar with the Blender game engine and the basic concepts of animation and graphics.
The workshop will be run by Dr. Krish Pillai and Dr. Susan Strayer. According to them, the goal of the workshop is to get area students interested in computer science and to promote computer science as a career choice for them.
Last summer, the video game design workshop was such a huge success that Computer Science faculty decided to offer it again this year. One of the most popular activities was sculpting on the computer, and all of the students were excited to creating their own video games.
The $70 fee is all-inclusive, providing study materials and exercise, lunch each day, instructional support from faculty and LHU teaching assistants, and access to the Penguin Lab. Payment is due at least one week before the first day of the workshop. As participation in the workshop is limited to 15 students, so they are urging interested students to register as soon as possible.
For more information about the workshop, registration and payment of fees, contact Dr. Krish Pillai at kpillai@lhup.edu or (570) 484-2346.