Location: Palmetto Innovation Center, 218 Main Street, Barnwell, South Carolina
Duration: Mon & Wed Sessions 3:30-6:30pm for 6 Weeks. In-person attendance required.
Cost: $100 for Entire Program!

Program Overview:

So You Want to Build a Website?
Are you ready to turn your creativity into income and start building websites that work? The Coding Career Connect program, hosted at the Palmetto Innovation Center in Barnwell, South Carolina, is your gateway to a new world of opportunity — even if you’ve never written a line of code before.

This practical, WordPress-focused training program is designed to equip you with the skills to build beautiful, functional websites and take on real client work with confidence. With light coding, hands-on support, and guaranteed paid work after graduation, this course is built to launch your freelance or creative tech journey — no tech degree required.

Why Coding Career Connect?

Website design and development is one of the most in-demand freelance services in today’s digital economy — and you don’t need to be a programmer to get started. This program opens doors to creative, remote work opportunities that fit your life and your schedule, without having to leave rural South Carolina. With small business needs at an all-time high, the skills you gain here can transform your income potential.

Program Highlights:

Beginner-Friendly Web Creation Training:
This 6-month course introduces you to WordPress — the platform powering more than 40% of the internet. You’ll learn to build, launch, and manage websites with confidence.

Hands-On Learning with Light Coding:
You’ll master WordPress fundamentals, explore themes and plugins, and learn just enough HTML/CSS to personalize and troubleshoot. You’ll also complete real-world projects to sharpen your skills and build your client-ready portfolio.

Expert Instruction:
Led by seasoned software developer Edward Wald, who brings 20 years of experience to the table, you’ll get personalized guidance every step of the way — from setup to site launch.

Guaranteed Paid Project After Graduation:
Upon completing the program, every graduate will be paid to work on web based project to kickstart their freelance or professional web career and start building a portfolio.

Career Coaching & Freelance Readiness:
We’ll help you build your online presence, set up your freelance business, write proposals, price your work, and prepare to meet real clients with confidence.

Affordable & Accessible:
The program is heavily subsidized and costs only $100 for the entire 6-week experience.

Who Should Apply:

• Residents of Allendale, Barnwell, Bamberg, and Hampton Counties (and surrounding CSRA areas)
• Creatives, side-hustlers, and future freelancers
• Beginners with no coding experience
• Anyone interested in turning digital skills into real income

Program Schedule:

🗓️ Mondays & Wednesdays
🕒 4 PM – 6 PM
📍 July 14, 2025 – August 20, 2025
📌 Palmetto Innovation Center, Barnwell, SC

Invest in Your Future:

Coding Career Connect is more than a class — it’s a launchpad. Whether you want to freelance, support your own business, or explore remote work, this program will help you take the first (paid!) step.

Apply now and build something amazing — starting with your future.

How much does the program cost?

The program is highly subsidized with grants and donations, so the cost to participants is only $100 for the entire program. This fee is required to participate.

Does this program provide a job after graduation?

For this new Summer cohort, we will connect each graduate with one contract website gig. Beyond that one project, we support your efforts to get prepared for a job in software development. If you are dedicated inside and outside class of time to learning coding skills, we feel confident that you will be well prepared for getting a start on a career in coding. In addition to the training, we will also work with students to develop all of the pieces they may need to apply for jobs, internships, or apprenticeships. This will include building a portfolio website, resume, and interview preparations.

The median starting salary for a developer in South Carolina is approximately $80k per year, but the range is $60-120k depending on your skill and experience. Your dedication to learning in this program can pay off, significantly!

What do I need to know in order to participate?

You need to have a basic computer fluency, which means being able to use a mouse and keyboard, and most importantly how to search on the internet. You do not need to have any background in coding to participate, and your experience on a computer can be very basic. But you must 1: not be intimidated by the use of a computer 2: have a passion for learning something new and understanding how things work and 3: be a self-starter, committed to seeing projects through regardless of what’s going on in your personal life. The great beauty of working in software development is often you can work at home or on your own schedule, but that also means you have the distractions of home life to contend with and you must be able to carve out time to be able to focus.

Do I need to own a computer to participate?

No! If you do not own a computer or laptop, you will be able to check out a brand new laptop from the Palmetto Innovation Center for the length of the program. Ultimately for this career path, you will need to invest in a laptop but we can help you with that choice too, when the time comes. If you own a laptop that you are comfortable with using, that’s great, you can definitely use that!

How much time should I anticipate dedicating to this program?

In addition to the 6 hours of in-class time, we anticipate that you will need to dedicate approximately 20 hours per week of outside class time working on projects or reviewing the material in order to develop a competency for creative coding.

Is there an age restriction to participate in this program?

There are no age restrictions for participation in this program, but you must self starter and must be a motivated learner.

Do I need to attend classes in-person?

We have found that to get the most out of this experience, students must attend in person. If something comes up, we will try to accommodate with hybrid online video connection or recordings. But in order to ensure you are fully engage, we require you attend the majority of classes in person.

What platforms will students use in the program? Can I work ahead or get started now?

We will use our own projects alongside many featured on FreeCodeCamp for lessons in the program, augmented by projects developed by our facilitator and mentor, Edward Wald. FreeCodeCamp is free and can be totally self-guided, so if you are eager and want to jump in, YES get on in there and start learning and we are happy to answer any questions you may have along the way!