Following a period of consultation, Rise Academy (formerly known as Rise Up Academy) has re-launched with a new leadership team, which includes Andy Beale, former CTO, BT Sport; Lisa Collins, managing director, Dovetail Creative; and Jackie Howes, senior director – global IT infrastructure architect, Warner Bros Discovery.

Rise Academy, which has charitable status, will offer vital educational workshops and Summer Schools lifting the lid on media and entertainment technology from age 14 until higher education or workplace. The academy will also work with the education sector to promote the industry and develop essential skills with staff and students.

In the last year the Academy reached over 2,000 young people through a wide program of work including in-school workshops, Summer School at Global Academy in London, partnering with TeenTech STEM festivals and mentoring university students.

Rise Academy’s London Summer School will return and be held July 29-30 at Global Academy. Summer School will also run in a new location in the North of West England Aug 1-3.

Currently focussing on the U.K., Rise Academy has ambitions to partner with organizations to deliver similar programs across the globe. The Rise Academy will work in conjunction with Rise with all three trustees remaining on the Rise U.K. Advisory Board.

Andy Beale, chair of trustees said; “We are delighted to be launching the Rise Academy charity, building on the previous success with an ambitious program to reach more young people across a wider geographic area than ever before. We will seek to educate, inspire, and inform them about the brilliant technical career pathways in the media and entertainment industry. We are grateful for all the incredible support we continue to enjoy from sponsors, volunteers and our Rise Academy Champions.”

Urban Judge, a student at the Rise Academy Summer School added: “The Summer School was absolutely brilliant; a fun, inspirational and informative experience which showed me all the amazing career opportunities, tech, and jobs inside the media world. We were able to get hands on with all the equipment and learn so much from the industry volunteers. As a direct result of the Summer School, I applied to join Global Academy where I am now studying. I love it and really enjoyed my time at the Rise Academy Summer as both an attendee in 2022 and a presenter in 2023 and I look forward to working with the team in 2024 and can’t wait to help make it a huge success.”