SOVA Innovation Hub announces CodeVA as partner, calls for participants
February 27, 2020
Mid-Atlantic Broadband Communities Corporation (MBC) and Microsoft Corp. are announcing that CodeVA is the first SOVA Innovation Hub partner. Through the partnership, CodeVA, a Richmond, Va.-based nonprofit, will create a new Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) chapter to provide computer science skills and training to K-12 teachers throughout Southern Virginia. Read More.....
CodeVA is calling
for Southern Virginia teachers to participate in new computer science program
as part of the Hub.
SOUTH BOSTON, Va. – Mid-Atlantic Broadband Communities
Corporation (MBC) and Microsoft Corp. are announcing that CodeVA is thefirst
SOVA
Innovation Hub partner. Through the partnership, CodeVA, a Richmond, Va.-based
nonprofit, will create a new Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA)
chapter to provide computer science skills and training to K-12 teachers throughout
Southern Virginia.
CodeVA is the first of several nonprofit organizations that
will have a presence at the SOVA Innovation Hub, a joint venture between MBC
and Microsoft in South Boston, Va., to offer digital skills training,
co-working space, and a connecting point for regional partnerships. Microsoft,
through its TechSpark
Initiative, will use the space to encourage innovation and spur economic
opportunities and job creation in the region.
According
to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, Virginia is among the top four
states with the most computer science jobs. This partnership will increase
access to computer science education and training and the opportunity it
provides for students and teachers in Southern Virginia. The CSTA chapter will
be led by local educators with support from CodeVA staff based in Richmond and
at the Institute for Advanced Learning & Research in Danville, Va.
“We are thrilled to
welcome CodeVA as the first partner at the SOVA Innovation Hub,” said Tad
Deriso, President and CEO of Mid-Atlantic
Broadband Communities Corporation. “The role that CodeVA will play in
granting access to computer science resources will be invaluable to teachers
and students in Southern Virginia.”
“CodeVA’s mission to bring computer science to every child
in Virginia makes it a great fit for the SOVA Innovation Hub,” said Jeremy Satterfield,
Manager of Microsoft TechSpark Virginia. “Partners like CodeVA will help
Microsoft TechSpark and MBC realize our ambition that the Hub will serve
as a centralized location to encourage innovation, spur economic opportunity,
and offer digital skills education and workforce training.”
“CodeVA is excited to be the first partner at the SOVA
Innovation Hub,” said Chris Dovi, CodeVA Executive Director. “Our mission to
bring quality computer science education to all Virginia students only happens
with the support of partners like Mid-Atlantic Broadband Communities
Corporation and Microsoft. Having the Hub is essential to our efforts in Southern
Virginia, as a place to build teaching communities through no-cost teacher
training and through the launch and support of a vibrant CSTA SOVA
chapter. We look forward to finding many creative uses for the SOVA Innovation
Hub that benefit teachers, parents, students and the entire
community.”
This CodeVA partnership has created a Southern
Virginia-based chapter of the CSTA to
provide local teachers an opportunity to learn computer science education best
practices, professional development, and other resources. Southern Virginia
educators can sign
up this month for a free membership with CSTA.
“We are excited about the opportunities that CSTA will bring
to teachers in Southern Virginia,” said Lori Meadows, Halifax County High
School geometry teacher and president of the new CSTA Southern Virginia
chapter. “Computer science is becoming integrated into every subject, and it
will be very beneficial to have resources available for our K-12 teachers as
they navigate how to teach CS skills in their classrooms.”
“IALR is proud to strengthen its current
partnership with CodeVA, enhancing professional development opportunities for
teachers to include the newly formed CSTA Chapter,” said Dr. Julie Brown,
Institute for Advanced Learning and Research’s (IALR) Director of Advanced
Learning. “As Virginia’s teachers implement new computer science standards, the
SOVA Innovation Hub will expand access to private-sector expertise and
high-quality training.”
About Mid-Atlantic Broadband Communities Corporation
Mid-Atlantic
Broadband Communities Corporation (MBC) is a Virginia-based leader in creating
unique public-private partnerships. MBC built and operates over 1,900 route
miles of fiber to provide affordable, open access infrastructure and
carrier-class broadband connectivity to drive economic growth. MBC’s mission is
to promote economic development by bridging the digital divide, reinvesting in
Southern Virginia communities, and reducing the burden of government.
About
Microsoft
Microsoft
(Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an
intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every
person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
For
more information, press only:
Microsoft
Media Relations, WE Communications for Microsoft, (425) 638-7777,
rrt@we-worldwide.com
Lauren Mathena, MBC, lauren.mathena@mbc-va.com