I had joined the 2nd cohort at MakerSquare in fall of 2013. Prior to MakerSquare, I had tried…read morelearning Ruby and JS on my own, through countless books and online tutorials. Having completed a few guides, I realized that my ability to learn "how to code" was hindered simply by my style of learning. I love interactive q/a style learning, which is what led me to MakerSquare. Of the different programs out there, the one thing I would urge others to consider is that they place a heavy amount of weight onto prework completed (how much work you've done ahead of time) and community-fit. If you're a solo worker and not a fan of collaborative environments, you may want to consider other programs. Anyways, long story short, I would whole heartedly recommend this program. As classmates, I had former programmers, retail store workers, a professional photographer and even a former elementary teacher. Out of the program, each of the students were working as professional front-end engineers (junior developers) within weeks of graduating. So safe to say, MakerSquare has a great professional network, and they know how to teach code. The classroom environment (the location on Congress ave) was a bit cramped at times. But from what I've heard the class size is now capped at 18, vs. 30 or so when I went through. All the 'issues' I had (space constraints, less than ideal student:instructor ratio, and focus on advanced concepts (algorithms and data structures) has been completely addressed. According to the staff, Cohort 5 is operating on an almost night/day difference of curriculum than what I had. So not only do I give the program 5 stars, I would (and likely will) retake the course to take advantage of their newest curriculum.

In short, I'm very happy! Though I'm not programming on a daily basis, I was able to get into the…read moreSt. Louis startup scene which was my main goal before enrolling at MakerSquare. I've also built a really awesome network of programmers and startup gurus in St. Louis and I believe that's thanks to MakerSquare! :-) I joined in Winter 2013-2014 (Cohort 3 Represent!). My reason for joining originally was not initially to become a software/web developer. Rather, I wanted to be able to communicate better with programmers that I worked with. I wanted to gain better access to the startup network. And most importantly I have a lot of ideas that I wanted to explore on my own - I didn't want to have to rely on finding a developer to build my ideas and turn them into a reality. I came out of the program having learned web-development with a strong emphasis on solid software development skills. Here's what I loved about MakerSquare: Curriculum: I was impressed by how much I learned. I literally had no experience in programming and I can now build web applications that ACTUALLY work. Not just simple interactive sites, but fully dynamic applications that work heavily with javascript on top of a rails framework. Moreover, all of this was taught with a very clear emphasis on test driven development (from the beginning) and solid software development principles. Instructors & Culture: They actually cared about the students and our progress and they were just all-around cool people. The culture at MakerSquare was actually a huge focus in the organization. I think what I loved most was learning how to learn all over again. I gained a new confidence that I've never had. The energy was also great, everyone had awesome ideas - from students to staff. Feedback: I would have liked to have more experience with Ruby and really learning how to code w/algorithms and such vs. w/Rails which is just teaching you the framework. From what I gather, Rails is now being treated as a detail vs. a core of what we learned. When we learned rails, it was about utilizing the framework for its ActiveRecord and quick-to-web functionality. MakerSquare still teaches web development (rails/mvc, http, javascript, etc) but now only after teaching other concepts that are applicable not just to the web, but to all software (test-driven development, SOLID principles, application boundaries, decoupling, databases, interfaces, software architecture, etc). I would have loved a deeper problem-solving skillset through exposure to algorithms. Looks like I was one cohort shy of that. MakerSquare now integrates algorithms and algorithmic thinking from day 1. Finally, MakerSquare was split into two nearby locations (Congress & Brazos). The extra space was nice, but it felt disconnected and I think it kept our cohort from being as close as some other cohorts have been.

Paulette, was wonderful helpful and honest. Got my zipper replaced on my sofa cushion. Fast,…read morefriendly & affordable.

Paulette was wonderful to work with! My husband and I took 2 of our 6 dining room chairs in for…read moreher to see and assess. We took the other 4 in after we knew that Austin Upholstery Studio was the perfect place to make the chair magic happen! Paulette helped us select the right fabrics and cushion thickness.These chairs are from a dining room set that was my grandmother's. Very old. In desperate need of an update! They look fabulous!! We are totally thrilled with the results. Such attention to detail and expert workmanship. And a reasonable price for this amount and quality of work. Thank you, Paulette and staff!

Like many others, I spent most of my life looking for answers. By the time I found MMS I was…read morepractically manic with frustration, but after a near-death experience in November I was more committed than ever to find, "The Thing". As others have said, you feel it as soon as you walk in. The air has a different quality. It's heavier, peaceful and quiet. It's a feeling of home. I don't have any life-changing results from life activation to share because I was already undergoing the first initiation a few days later and am preparing to receive my second at the International location in May. It was just clear from the beginning I'd found what I was looking for. I've experienced all kinds of new spiritual sensations and am no longer allowing anyone to treat me with less respect and dignity than we all deserve. It's not a sunshine and roses new age all is love parade. All the fun new experiences come along with challenges to your ego, the deep work of trauma resolution and confronting your resistance. The community is very supportive and I've found great likeminded folks who will objectively talk about their struggles and allow you to express your doubts without calling your faith or commitment into question. They ALLOW YOU TO BE HUMAN, while encouraging you to continue to strive for more clarity, healing and magickal hygiene.

I highly recommend all of the classes and healings I've tried from The Modern Mystery School! Tien…read moreBui is one of the practitioners here. She is really sweet, compassionate, and a great listener. I definitely suggest starting with the Life Activation session. My anxiety decreased so much after this healing. I also started enjoying life so much more after feeling very lost. I also took Empower Thyself Initiation, which is a two-day class that Tien teaches. It totally changed my life. I received rituals and meditation techniques that I use daily. It has really helped me to step into my own power and stop living life for other people. I'm so much happier now! I now have tools to protect my own energy, which used to be a drain as someone who is quite empathic. I can stay positive on a daily basis so much more easily! If you're seeking more meaning to life or healing, this is an excellent place to look!

came as a plus one for a company event! if you're viewing this experience from that perspective, i…read morethink it's a great! they're super organized and know how to cater to a large group (~25 people) really well. we assembled a berry tart to bake at the start then got to build our own bruschetta combos. there was whipped feta, turkish apricot, and orange chutney as bases, and you could top it with mint, tomatoes, bell pepper, and cucumber. at the end before we ate, we took turns seasoning the chicken and watched a demo on how she made the carrot hummus. i didn't learn as much actual cooking as i was hoping. i'll have to try their public classes instead!

Such a fun date night experience! The cooking classes are held in a beautiful space in east Austin…read moreand are lead by very talented and kind chefs. They describe it as a "recreational" cooking class, which means there is some light cooking involved but they've done a lot of the heavy lifting which takes the stress out of the experience and maximizes enjoyment. There were about 15 people total in the class. It's BYOB and they give you all the recipes after. We attended the New American Mediterranean class. Menu items included strawberry gazpacho, an arugula salad, carrot hummus, lovely grilled chicken marinated in Mediterranean spices, and berry ricotta tarts for dessert. Each item was more epic than the last. My girlfriend and I agreed that this was the best meal we've had in a long time. Absolutely delicious! We can't wait to try some of the recipes at home, and attend another cooking class (possibly the Italian one!) soon.

If you want to learn Cuban Salsa this is the place. I have taken lessons from Jeff Link for about…read more20 weeks . These are group lessons easy on the pocket book. He makes it so much fun and structures his teaching in a way that builds on each lesson. His enthusiasm is very real. He cares about you learning to dance. It is the best part of my week. Plus he introduces you to the social dancing scene.

I've been with Bembé for a couple of months now and it has turned out to be one of the best…read moredecisions I've made. I had always wanted to learn to dance, but I had never danced before and had no partner. I was unsure how this was going to work--but I am so glad I went anyway! Bembé had a page on FB announcing their Intro classes--no partner needed. The time and price was great--so I signed up. Located in Oakley near the Blue Manatee and Red Feather, classes are held in the Cincinnati Ballroom Company's studio. Jeff, the owner of Bembé, teaches and is the most talented, fun, and energetic guy--he is so welcoming and will always take the time so you can get the moves. And out of the 10 people in the class--only one couple! Not only did I gain dance skills, but the group and Jeff is very social as well. They go out to dance as a group frequently to Salsa bars, seminars, out-of-town trips (even international trips!) and welcome everyone! Some of the nicest people I have ever met! In fact, I kind of don't want to make this post because it is one of the best kept secrets in Cincinnati--but Bembé deserves the credit!

Great people and staff. Made everything easy to sign up and schedule while learning from very…read morerespected professionals in the industry !

If you have an itch you need to scratch...and that itch is to hone your DJ skillset, then you can…read more"baby scratch" your way into ATX nightlife stardom! Or of your like me and the only way you drop sick beats is throwing records on ground, this is still an awesome place to get your turntable learning on! I came in to audit an intro class here one evening and it was the most fun I ever had learning how to do something waaay out of my knowledge and comfort arenas. The equipment here is state the art and each station has dual turntables and a mac so you can track your beats and your progress. The instructors are not only pros in the business, but their passion is contagious! They are a non-profit and work with a lot of youth programs, which I think is awesome for community engagement and being another fantastic Eastside staple only adds to the character of this place! By the end of the class, I was not only simon-says baby scratching on both turntables, but felt like I could walk out and confidently nickname myself DJ Madame Magic Touch!

I can't recommend Vanessa enough! We originally sleep trained our son at 3 months because he…read morewouldn't nap for more than 30 min. That worked well but right around 5-5.5 months something changed and he had trouble sleeping again. We started rocking him to sleep again and it was so frustrating. We finally found Vanessa at 6 months and am so happy we did. Our struggles were naps and 530am wake ups. In just one week we saw such a huge improvement and those early morning wake ups started to fade away. We decided to add on another week to make sure we were in good shape for our upcoming vacation, and she was so invested in us it was amazing. She did everything she could to coach us and help us reach our goals with the tight timeline. (we leave this weekend, fingers crossed!) The time she spent with us was above and beyond, and I can say it's such a great value and investment, especially since we worked with someone else prior. I loved the sleep log and the comments she made daily to help encourage us along the way. Thank you Vanessa!!

I'm not a first time mom so I thought I had this whole baby sleep thing figured out and apparently…read more*NEWS FLASH* I didn't! I used Vanessa's "pick my brain" help when my baby decided it was time to wreck havoc on the wonderful nightly pattern I thought we had going. We needed a fresh set of eyes on our situation to give us some clarity on what the root of our discourse was, and that is exactly what she provided. We tweaked what she recommended we tweak and lo and behold it worked! And everyone's sleep became markedly better in a matter of a few days. Thank you Vanessa for helping us get back on the right (and well rested) track!!

I took the beginner bungee class Cata (sp) and had the best time! Highly recommend! Lots of laughs,…read moresome sweat and time just flew by.

This place is AWSOME for anyone 6+!…read more Sky Candy has very diverse classes and is good for adults and children alike. I love all the different props you get to use and lessons you get to take. Very organized and always has someone to greet you and tell you where to go at the front desk. My fav thing to do is the silks. I've only been a few times, but have already learned a lot and love going!