Coding is a key part of the foundation of technology, but access to learning this skill is not always easy to find. Both Wilberforce University and Apple have worked separately to ensure youth have access to coding classes, and now they will be working together. Find out how from their release below!
Wilberforce University celebrates student technology with Computer Science Education Week. Building on Apple’s K-12, Everyone Can Code curriculum, Wilberforce announces it will become a community center for Coding and Creativity as part of Apple’s Community Education Initiative and Tennessee State University’s HBCU C2 Initiative. These programs are designed to bring coding and creativity experiences to historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and their communities.
“Wilberforce University is excited to be a participating institution in the Apple community education initiative, said Wilberforce University president Dr. Elfred Anthony Pinkard. This partnership aligns wonderfully with our institutional imperative to provide career development and entrepreneurial opportunities for our students. Introducing our students to coding and supporting the development of the knowledge and skills for the 21st century workplace further ensures successful post graduate outcomes for our students.”
Wilberforce faculty leaders will participate in Apple’s ongoing Community Education Initiative Learning Series during which they will learn coding and app development. As part of that ongoing professional development, educators will explore innovative ways to engage learners as they use Apple’s comprehensive, easy-to-learn, Swift programming language.
Dr. Michael Robinson, the dean of Institutional Effectiveness at Wilberforce, says once students understand that coding actually plays an every day role in everyone’s lives, the concept becomes simple. “All students can learn to code – they can create apps for cell phones or tablets. You will learn you don’t have to be a coding expert, just use coding to develop the needs you have.” The theory that coding is for people who use more of the left side of their brain than the right is debunked by Dr. Robinson. He says apps that are used all day, every day, are part of the coding family. Whether it’s to keep track of your calories, taking a selfie, setting appointments on your calendar, or even texting, all are products of someone setting up a code.
As part of its Community Education Initiative, Apple is supporting Wilberforce University, the nation’s first private HBCU with equipment and professional development to help the university become the pre-eminent HBCU C2 community center to bring coding and creativity to the Greater Dayton, Ohio area.
During the 2021 spring semester, Apple coding curriculum will be woven into the Wilberforce course of studies. Members of the community can expect the weekend, coding workshops to be developed soon and thanks to Apple, they will cost nothing to register.
