CPATH EAE: Campus Wide Computation Initiative - A New Model for Computing Education

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The goal of this project is to develop a model for a campus wide computation initiative that will transform undergraduate computing education in the institution and academic environment. The activities that make up this model will engage in computation students and faculty who are outside the typical computing community. The transformation is achieved through the involvement of (1) faculty leaders inside the computing community in teaching and research collaborations with faculty and students from outside the computing community, and (2) faculty and industrial partners who develop programs that highlight the increasingly important role of computation in their respective industries. The two colleges have developed and will implement a coordinated model for a computation initiative that will (1) attract non-traditional CS students to take introductory computing courses (not computer literacy courses) and (2) encourage faculty from non-CS departments to develop discipline specific courses that build on the introductory computation courses and incorporate higher level computation skills. The model is based on the framework of a curriculum in computational methods that includes a core of courses that addresses common applications of computation across disciplines, followed by additional discipline specific courses within other departments that focus on computation activities in those fields. The strategies that will be developed and implemented for transforming undergraduate computing education, specifically fostering change in the attitudes of students and faculty and increasing the visibility of computation, will serve as a blueprint for implementing similar changes at other institutions. Dissemination of the model for a campus wide computation initiative, along with strategies for implementation, will make it possible for the changes to be replicated at other institutions. This will ultimately result in increased competence and familiarity with computing skills amongst all graduates, particularly in the sciences, and a more visible role and presence for computing in the academy.