Apple Preps Bowie State to Become Community Coding Center

Bowie State to Bring Tech Training Opportunities to Students & Broader Community

MEDIA CONTACT: Damita Chambers, dchambers@bowiestate.edu, 301-832-2628 mobile

(BOWIE, Md.) – In celebration of Computer Science Education Week Dec. 7-11, 2020, Bowie State University announces that it has joined Apple’s Community Education Initiative and Tennessee State University’s HBCU C2 initiative to become a center to expand coding and technology training for its students and the larger community.

The HBCU C2 initiative is designed to bring coding and creativity experiences to historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and their communities through the development of Community Centers for Coding and Creativity on the partner campuses. As part of its Community Education Initiative, Apple is supporting Maryland’s first HBCU with equipment and professional development opportunities to help the university become the preeminent HBCU C2 community center to build coding and creativity. The goal is also to extend learning opportunities through partnerships with local school districts and nonprofit organizations.

“Bowie State University is proud to partner with Apple and Tennessee State University to expand the experiential learning opportunities and professional development for students preparing for exciting careers in information technology and the community at large,” said Bowie State University Provost Carl Goodman. “This partnership opens doors for Bowie State University to not only meet the workforce needs of regional employers looking for highly skilled technology professionals, but to also prepare our students for the careers of today and tomorrow.”

Faculty leaders will participate in Apple’s ongoing Community Education Initiative Learning Series to learn about coding and app development. As part of that ongoing professional development, educators will explore innovative ways to engage with learners using Apple’s comprehensive curriculum, which utilizes its easy-to-learn Swift programming language. The BSU Core Innovation Team will also find creative ways to infuse the Apple training modules into the BSU curriculum and expand hands-on learning opportunities for the local community.

“It is a very exciting opportunity that Bowie State University can be positioned as a community leader in providing learning experiences in coding and creativity,” said Dr. Rose Shumba, chairperson of BSU’s Department of Computer Science, who is BSU’s lead faculty for the partnership. “The program is also about building the confidence of our students that regardless of their major, they can do app development.”

Bowie State University is a well established leader in information and computer technology education. The university’s cybersecurity programs are designated by the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security as models of excellence. Bowie State is also a top 5 Maryland university for graduating African Americans with bachelor’s degrees in computer and information sciences. 

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About Bowie State University
Bowie State University (BSU) is an important higher education access portal for qualified persons from diverse academic and socioeconomic backgrounds, seeking a high-quality and affordable public comprehensive university. The university places special emphasis on the science, technology, cybersecurity, teacher education, business, and nursing disciplines within the context of a liberal arts education. For more information about BSU, visit bowiestate.edu.