TFA, AT&T deal will expand computer science education in KC
December 5, 2016 | Meghan LeVota
Despite the growing number of computing job openings, only 1 in 4 U.S. schools offer computer science classes, according to the White House.
To expand its computer science initiative, Teach for America Kansas City announced Monday that the organization received a donation of $100,000 from AT&T’s philanthropic arm, AT&T Aspire.
The partnership’s goal is to expand computer science education to low-income communities and reach more than 150 area students with professional development programs as well as resources for teachers. With AT&T’s support, Teach for America Kansas City members will have access to computer science curriculum and professional development.
Both organizations said they are committed to connecting teachers to opportunities to develop youth tech skills.
“Our young people are our greatest strength and will set the course for our future,” AT&T Missouri president John Sondag said in a release. “By working with Teach For America we are able to provide critical opportunities in computer science that will help ignite their potential and set them on a track to succeed in 21st-century careers.”
In 2015, Teach for America formally launched its computer science initiative with the support of AT&T and the National Science Foundation. In addition to Kansas City, the initiative will spread to the Bay Area, Dallas-Fort Worth, Rio Grande Valley, South Carolina, and Washington D.C. over the next two years.
2016 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Minddrive fuels youth development through hands-on STEM
Carlos Alonzo, a 15-year-old engineer at Minddrive, was always good at math. In the seventh grade, Alonzo’s teachers gave him the opportunity to skip ahead and take algebra. Although he enjoyed it and did well in the class, he ran into a problem: His school didn’t offer him an advanced class for eighth grade. That one-year…
Entrepreneur, startup advocate becomes new KC Chamber chair
A prominent Kansas City entrepreneur with some serious startup chops is now serving as the new chair of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. Matt Condon, CEO of Bardavon Health Innovations and ARC Physical Therapy, was unanimously voted to serve at the helm of the chamber’s board of directors as its chairman. Condon, 42,…
Video: Healthy workplace culture begins with intention, communication
Editor’s note: This content was sponsored by Mid-Continent Public Library but independently produced by Startland News. Creating a healthy workplace culture must be done early and with intention, said Adrienne Haynes and Dwayne Lewis. To help startups develop a strategic human resource plan, Haynes, managing partner of SEED Law, and Dwayne Lewis, president of Lewis…
From Google to KC, Beth Ellyn McClendon’s advice to startups: Test everything
Don’t fall in love with an idea, Beth Ellyn McClendon said. “Test everything, especially your assumptions, and allow yourself to be persuaded by data,” said McClendon, a seed investor who formerly worked with Google, Android, YouTube, Cisco and Netscape. “Try to remember — tattoo it on your eyelids if you have to – anecdotes are not…