More than 500 CEOs and leaders in education, corporate and nonprofit organizations signed a letter urging state governments to commit to expanding access and curriculum in computer science for K-12 students. The bipartisan letter called for localities to “update the K-12 curriculum in each state, for every student in every school to have the opportunity to learn computer science.” The leaders partnered with Code.org, a nonprofit organization that advocates for increased access to computer science, particularly for women, minorities and low-income students.
Signatories included leaders of prominent companies and foundations, like Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet and Google, Bill Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors. Collectively, they articulated the reasons why computer science training is so critical in the 21st century economy, including:
- The expansion of remote work, which allows any state to become a technology hub if an adequately trained workforce exists regionally;
- The growing importance of cybersecurity, which makes increased computer science literacy a matter of national security; and
- The gap between U.S. college graduates who studied computer science and the number of open computer science jobs in the U.S. Currently, there are nearly 700,000 job openings in computing but last year only 80,000 computer science students graduated into the workforce.
The need for more computer scientists in the United States has long been analyzed, and reformers have pointed to the lack of educational resources as a leading driver of the shortage. Just half of all American high schools offer computer science courses, according to Code.org. The U.S. trails peer countries in science, technology, engineering and mathematics training, ranking 39th in STEM degrees awarded, according to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development data. The lack of computer science expertise in the U.S. could dramatically hinder innovation and economic growth: Employment in computer and information technology occupations is projected to grow by 667,000 new jobs from 2020 to 2030, faster than the average for all occupations, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Without an adequately trained workforce in computer science, many of these jobs will remain unfilled – constraining America’s ability to remain a global leader in technological ingenuity.
Robert F. Smith, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Vista Equity Partners – who joined other CEOs in signing the letter calling to expand computer science education – has been a vocal advocate for expanding access to computer science programming, particularly for women and minorities. Smith’s contributions to his alma mater, Cornell University, have established STEM support programs for underrepresented minorities who come to Cornell from urban high schools, as well as graduate students who attended Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Cornell recently named the Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering to recognize Smith’s leadership supporting students pursuing STEM education.
Smith also supports students in pursuing STEM careers through his work with the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), a storied organization with the mission of building a pipeline of underrepresented students to succeed in college. The Fund II Foundation UNCF STEM Scholars Program was created in 2016 after Fund II Foundation – of which Smith is the founding director and President – donated $48 million to UNCF. The STEM Scholars Program seeks to address the diversity gap in STEM by supporting Black students pursuing STEM education and careers.
On the importance of ensuring equity in STEM, Smith said, “There is a profound urgency to ensure all students, especially Black and Latino students who have been historically underrepresented in upwardly mobile careers, can develop the knowledge and skills critical to succeed.” Learn more about Robert F. Smith and his commitment to educational reform initiatives.
