Oakland County students traveling to MSU for computer training

Students from more than 42 schools across Michigan, including several in Oakland County, are traveling to Michigan State University Thursday as part of a campaign to improve computer proficiency.

Local schools participating include Ferndale Middle School, Madison Heights Middle School and Wilkinson Middle School in Madison Heights.

The Michigan Film & Digital Media Office is parterning with Google in Computer Science First, a statewide campaign for students in fourth through eighth grades.

The online curriculum, offered at no cost, is designed to help increase accessibility to a discipline with high demand in the job market.

Students and teachers will gather at MSU for demonstrations in game design, storytelling and other computer science topics. In addition, there will be interactive stations provided by Google, MSU, Master of Art in Education Technology, Boy Scouts of America, ITEC of Lansing, Square One, Strength in Numbers, and Pixo Group.

The partnership with Google is the initial foray into building public-private partnerships for the MFDMO, which no longer provides incentives to filmmakers. In addition to working with private-sector companies like Google, the film office is planning a promotional campaign to raise awareness of film and digital media production resources in Michigan.

Job growth in computer science in Michigan is increasing at three-and-a-half times the average compared to other industries. By 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts there will be 1 million more computer science jobs than graduating students who qualify for them.

"We know that exposure to computer science can lead to some of the most rewarding jobs in the world, and we have a responsibility to inspire the next generation of tech innovators," said Rob Biederman, Google's Head of Midwest Public Affairs. "Kids from all neighborhoods and all backgrounds should be encouraged to be creators -- not just consumers -- of technology."

Thursday's program is full, but Computer Science First provides online programs that schools can use in class or as part of an after-school program. For more information, go to www.michiganfilmoffice.org/csfirst ^[1] or call 517-373-3456.