Good Works

Test!

Doers of Good Works

Be doers and act on what you hear

(James 1:22)

We are raising an amazing son. We take great pride in exercising our parental bragging rights. Here’s the backstory:  Yesterday was the first mentoring session of #CodeRoadClub, so my husband and son attended with me in support. While the program targets young women, as a mom, I saw it as great opportunity for Q to gain exposure to careers in technology. To learn more about women in Memphis, Nairobi, Nashville, and Toronto meeting weekly in a live classroom for educational, cultural, and social exchanges, visit http://www.memphisworks.com/coderoadclub, 

or follow us as I live tweet on Saturdays from @LTR_Latrobe_Mfg to @CodeRoadClub.

The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry…life happened and we began the day with a few minor technical difficulties that were quickly overcome by a remarkable support team from all four locations. I privately joke that I live with #ProblemSolver #1 and #2, so in their true nature, their immediate response was to jump in to fix the technology fails. While the girls from different parts of the world took turns introducing themselves and learning valuable information about the importance of networking and demonstrating abilities, my son was purposely listening and looking for opportunities for improvement. When the program ended, he quietly sent me a text that he had “a few ideas to help this work a little better.” Then he proceeded to network by starting a conversation with one of the coders/presenters who recommended building solutions that solve problems.

I woke up this morning to find a professional email from my fifteen year old son that laid out his suggestions for improving the technical production of future sessions. With no edits, I forwarded his email to Mary Hayes, CEO of Engage Learning Systems, and the braintrust behind #CodeRoadClub. She responded with a prompt thank you note to Q, with an offer for him to attend next week’s session as a part of the tech support team, lol! Of course, he accepted!!!

When I wrote about #CSforall in last week’s blog post, I knew that I would begin mentoring with the #CodeRoadClub as my contribution for exposing local young women to this aspect of STEM education. What I did not anticipate was how this act might impact or benefit my own son.  Nor did I expect his level of engagement or participation or excitement about a Saturday morning project.  As a parent, I am most proud that instead of criticizing imperfections in a process, he took professional actions to offer solutions to make something good better. He’s a doer. How are you incorporating technology into your educational, cultural, or service projects? Let us know by commenting or sending an email to latanyua.robinson@gmail.com. If you like this post and want to catch up on some of my previous discussions, please visit the full Purposed Work blog at http://ltr-latrobe-mfg.blogspot.com/.

BASIC Good Works

In the beginning was the Word…

(John 1:1)

January 30, 2016 for me will be one those days committed to memory: Where we you when you heard the announcement from the White House on a specific initiative to prepare the next generation of technology leaders? In his weekly address, the President announced plans for a $4 billion investment, stating: We have to make sure all our kids are equipped for the jobs of the future. (To view the full statement about Computer Science for All, #CSforAll, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy-iY3-otk4).

The meaning and application of computer science has transformed since my first introduction in the 80s. When I signed up for my first computer class, I did not fully understand what that meant. Keep in mind; this was prior to the days of the majority of families in our community having a home computer. I do not remember touching a computer until I was in high school, so I thought the course I signed up for was to teach me the basic skills of using a computer. I had no idea that BASIC was a programming language that I was expected to learn to solve problems.

Through high school and college, I managed to push through languages foreign to me like BASIC, FORTRAN, COBOL, and TURBO C because they were required courses for my engineering major. I refer to them as foreign languages because although I mastered writing IF/THEN/ELSE statements (with and without syntax errors), the problems we were solving had no real life application in my real world experiences. After gaining work experience, I began to understand the relationship and dependence on foundational computer science programming:

Hierarchy of Programming Languages

In my current workforce readiness initiatives, I often get pushback from parents and elders for suggesting that kids enroll in manufacturing or industrial programs of study. For them, manufacturing has a connotation of being a laborer, without regard for the technology required for process or product improvement. What I have found is a lack of awareness of the computer science basics necessary throughout the value chain of machining or automation or robotics, etc.  Just as in the beginning was the Word, the beginning of value creation rests on equipping our next generation of technology leaders to solve problems using computer science. How will your community participate in #CSforall?  Let us know by commenting or sending an email to latanyua.robinson@gmail.com. If you like this post and want to catch up on some of my previous discussions, please visit the full Purposed Work blog at http://ltr-latrobe-mfg.blogspot.com/.