Insight on Technology

21 Insight on Technology N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 8 Q: Why is Microsoft TechSpark investing here in Northeast Wisconsin? TechSpark is in six regions around the United States, and each region is unique. Northeast Wisconsin was chosen because of the collab- orative nature of the community. It's why we have seen success bringing programs like TE ALS (Technolog y Education and Liter- acy in Schools), which puts technology into classrooms to "team-teach" computer science, and teacher training from Code.org, into the Northeast Wisconsin ecosystem. The commu- nity came together to facilitate these programs. Q: How did Microsoft go about identifying its initiatives, and what progress has it made? M i c r o s o f t Te c h S p a r k h a s f i v e p i l l a r s : d i g i t a l t r a n s fo r m a t i o n , d i g i t a l s k i l l s/ comp ut e r s c ie nce e duc at ion , c a re e r p at h- w ay s , s up p or t for nonp r of it s a n d r u r a l broa dba nd . He re a re s ome e x a mple s of t he work we're doi n g i n Nor t he a s t Wi s con si n . Fi rst , ou r d ig it a l t r a n sfor m at ion work i s ab out he lpi n g s t a r t ups , you n g compa- n ie s a nd e s t abl i s hed bu si ne s se s u se tec h- nolog y to d ig it a l ly t ra n sfor m a nd h ave a n even big ger i mpact. For e x a mple, Tit letow n- Tec h i s a pa r t ne rs h ip w it h t he Gree n B ay P ac ke rs a nd t he Un ive rsit y of Wi scon si n System t h at work s w it h new st a r t ups, g row- i ng compa n ies a nd est abl i shed bu si nesses i n t rad it ion a l i ndu st r ie s to deve lop t he i r ow n d ig it a l tec h nolog y adva ncement s a nd foster econom ic g row t h. We're e xc ited t h at Titetow nTec h w i l l open ne x t yea r. O u r d i g it a l t r a n sfor m at ion work a l s o i s i nteg rated i nto t he suppor t we prov ide to nonprof it s. For e x a mple, M ic rosoft h a s pa r t ne red w it h R ive r v iew Ga rde n s, a "no fa i l" job t ra i n i ng prog ra m for people who h ave faced home le s sne s s a nd ot he r ba r r i- e r s t o e mploy me nt . We a re he lpi n g t he Appleton-ba sed nonprof it u se tec h nolog y to i nc re a se t he e ff ic ie nc y of it s prog ra m s, wh ic h i nc lude a n e mph a si s on le a r n i n g fa r m i ng tec h n iques, so t hey c a n ser ve even more c l ient s. Ou r ca reer pat hways work helps ensu re a l l workers a re empowered to ga in releva nt sk i l l s, no m at ter where t hey a re i n t hei r ca reers, to succeed i n our new digita l econ- omy. I n Nor t hea st Wi scon si n, M ic rosoft pa r tners w it h Bay Area Work force Deve l- opment a nd t he N E W M a nufacturi ng Al li- a nce to enable people to acqui re new sk i l ls a nd con nect w it h jobs t h at requ i re less than a traditiona l four-year college degree. This partnership is working on defining what new jobs exist and how to skill people for technology-related jobs. Regarding rural broadband, Micro- soft's Airband Initiative is helping close the rural broadband gap across the United States using TV White Space technology, which leverages unused broadcasting frequencies and other technologies. In Februar y, Airband partnered with Packerland Broadband to provide broadband internet access to approximately 82,000 people living in rural regions of northern Wisconsin, along with the Upper Peninsula of Mich- igan, over the next four years. There also has been a tremendous amount of work done helping students gain access to digital skills. Our goal is to learn about local challenges and partner with the community to find solutions. Our initiatives evolve over time, based on what we have learned, to continually ensure we are supporting the community to the best of our ability. We plan to share what we've learned more broadly to help others who are working on these issues around the country. Q: What's new with the TEALS program and other education initiatives? W hen it comes to d igit a l sk i l l s for you ng people, M ic rosoft pa r tners w it h nonprofit s a nd sc hool s to strengthen their abi lit y to offer computer science education. T here is a nationa l shortage of computer sc ience teac hers, so we've broug ht i n prog ra m s li ke M icrosoft TE ALS a nd Code.org to help provide training a nd other support for teachers. We are a lso working with the NE W I T Al lia nce, a group of loca l industr y leaders concerned about the widening gap i n t he supply of tec h nolog y ta lent, to bri ng more access to digita l sk i l ls a nd computer science educa- tion to schools in Northeast Wisconsin. Q: Insight Publications has launched a magazine devoted to technology, and Microsoft created this program to foster economic opportunity and job creation. Why is technology an important focus right now? We now l ive i n a d ig it a l economy, a nd t he s k i l l s needed to succeed i n t h at economy a re c h a ng i ng fa ster t h a n ever before. T he jobs of tomor row don't e x i st tod ay bec au se of tec h nolog y suc h a s AI a nd t he c loud. As we see soc iet y mov i ng to be more a nd more tec h n ic a l, we be l ieve it i s ou r respon sibi l it y to he lp people benefit from t he c h a nge it br i ngs. Our career pathways work helps ensure all workers are empowered to gain relevant skills, no matter where they are in their careers, to succeed in our new digital economy.

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