ANN ARBOR – The week of July 20 Michigan MiSTEM Network and Grand Valley State University provided virtual Computer Science professional training for K-12 Michigan educators. Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist Jr., himself a technology professional, co-hosted the event and spoke during the educational series.
In this video interview, he talks about the importance of training Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math students in Michigan to fill the hundreds of thousands of openings across the state.
“I want to thank our educators for their time and commitment to computer science and their willingness to step outside of their comfort zone to teach new courses that will better prepare our students today for vital careers of the future,” Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II said. “Spending five days of their summer for the betterment of their community and students, and problem solving and planning during the stress of this pandemic, show the true grit and commitment of Michigan’s educators making a difference for our young students.”
The event, hosted by the Michigan MiSTEM Network and Grand Valley State University (GVSU), provides Computer Science professional learning for all K-12 Michigan educators at little to no cost.
By creating computer science opportunities for students, this will help solve the demand for computer science employees in Michigan. The state currently has over 15,000 open computing jobs which is 3.8 times the average demand rate in Michigan. All students need access to computer science learning tools to help solve this issue. In 2019, of the students who took AP Computer Science Principles or AP CS, 29% were female and even less were minorities.
The event had around 100 middle school and high school teachers in attendance and is part of ongoing efforts to help schools across the state implement important STEM education programs.
To learn more about Code.org professional learning in Michigan, visit Mi-Coding.com.
To learn more about the MiSTEM Network, visit www.michigan.gov/MiSTEM.
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