ONLINE EDUCATION
Ciena Solutions | August 26, 2021
As the new school year approaches, educators are looking for ways to encourage students to stay engaged with virtual and hybrid learning while helping them take ownership of their learning.
Join the Ciena Solutions Challenge educator roundtable on Tuesday, August 31 to hear from teachers on how they encouraged students to stay engaged with virtual learning, built positive relationships with students, and helped them find an authentic purpose for learning through the Ciena Solutions Challenge. Educators from the United States and India will share stories of how they supported students in developing solutions for issues related to mental health, climate change and the environment, and community resource mapping. Click here for a summary of the projects students completed during the Ciena Solutions Challenge pilot.
The Ciena Solutions Challenge is a design challenge inviting middle and high school students globally to design solutions that address the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals in their communities. Educators around the world may register now for the Challenge, and beginning on Wednesday, September 15, educators may apply for a $2,500 USD Sustainability Award to sustain and scale students' projects. Educators and students will also receive mentoring, professional learning, and showcase opportunities throughout the Challenge.
Ciena's Digital Inclusion program aims to mobilize the company's global workforce, leverage its innovation leadership, and collaborate with customers, suppliers and other partners to bridge the digital divide. Ciena has committed to fund $10 million (USD) over a five-year period on programming that promotes digital inclusion through greater connectivity, access to technology and digital skilling, with a goal of expanding opportunities for 100,000 underserved students in our global communities.
About Digital Promise
Digital Promise is a nonprofit organization that builds powerful networks and takes on grand challenges by working at the intersection of researchers, entrepreneurs, and educators. Our vision is that all people, at every stage of their lives, have access to learning experiences that help them acquire the knowledge and skills they need to thrive and continuously learn in an ever-changing world.
Read More
TALENT DEVELOPMENT
The Exelon Foundation | May 31, 2022
The Exelon Foundation surprised nine female STEM students and graduates of the Exelon STEM Leadership Academy with full-ride college scholarships of about $1 million.
“We want to ensure these outstanding young women the opportunity and financial flexibility to study at the college of their choice. It’s not just a scholarship, but, hopefully, a path to future leadership at Exelon.”
- Paula Conrad, vice president of Corporate Relations for Exelon
Following are the STEM Leadership Academy Scholarship recipients of 2022:
STEM Academy Baltimore and DC
Allegre Oledibe, Springdale, Md. (General Engineering, Virginia Tech)
Micaela Venyo, Belcamp, Md. (Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech)
Tahreem Rana, Baltimore, Md. (Computer Science, University Maryland Baltimore County)
STEM Academy Chicago
Nicole Constante, Chicago, Ill. (Engineering Management, University of Illinois Chicago)
XiuYi Tan, Chicago, Ill. (Computer Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Aditi Bhatt, Chicago, Ill. (Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
STEM Academy Philadelphia
Aliyana Banner, Yardley, Pa. (Mechanical Engineering, Drexel University)
Maitri Patel, Philadelphia, Pa. (Industrial and Operations Engineering, University of Michigan Ann Arbor)
Emily Curran, Jamison, Pa. (Computer Engineering, Villanova University)
Read More
TALENT DEVELOPMENT
Accenture | February 21, 2022
Accenture has made a strategic investment, through Accenture Ventures, in Talespin, a spatial computing company focused on workforce talent development and skills mobility. Talespin’s platform delivers XR-based learning and training applications, mixed reality job aides to support employee job performance and a new skills-based approach to work and productivity.
The World Economic Forum projects that by 2030, over one billion workers will have needed to reskill, as the core capabilities required for work across industries change. This makes it vital that companies implement engaging training programs to equip their workforces with these new skills. Immersive learning, built on Extended Reality (XR) technologies, offers opportunities for employees to participate in “hands-on” learning, and has been shown to lead to greater learning retention. Talespin’s platform powers the creation and distribution of immersive learning experiences, and supports an ecosystem of learning content creators, leading learning platforms, XR hardware partners and enterprise customers. It uses 3D, virtual humans and environments to help people practice conversational skills and simulate jobs with real-time feedback and skills analytics.
“As the workforce evolves, so do the skills needed to excel and succeed. At the same time, device, computing and connectivity advances are enabling companies to explore new, innovative approaches to learning. We are excited to work with Accenture to further develop our immersive learning platform and accelerate its adoption on a global scale.”
Kyle Jackson, co-founder and chief executive officer, Talespin
Tom Lounibos, managing director of Accenture Ventures, said, “Over 90% of executives who responded to a recent Accenture survey believe that their existing training methods need to be more effective and efficient. Yet conventional approaches to training, such as instructor-led classes or online video series, are not always effective; in fact, research shows that learners forget 70 percent of this type of content within 24 hours and nearly 90 percent in a month. The need for engaging, immersive learning is clear, and we believe that Talespin is well-positioned to address this challenge.”
Talespin is part of Accenture Ventures’ Project Spotlight, an engagement and investment program that connects emerging technology software startups with the Global 2000 to fill strategic innovation gaps. Project Spotlight offers extensive access to Accenture’s domain expertise and its enterprise clients, helping startups harness human creativity and deliver on the promise of their technology. Talespin is also the latest addition to the investment portfolio of Accenture Ventures, which is focused on investing in companies that create or apply disruptive enterprise technologies.
About Accenture
Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Interactive, Technology and Operations services all powered by the world’s largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 674,000 people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace the power of change to create value and shared success for our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at accenture.com.
About Talespin
Talespin is building the spatial computing platform to power talent development and skills mobility for the future of work. Founded in 2015, the company leverages its proprietary platform to offer enterprise customers, partners, and individuals an end-to-end solution for creating, distributing, and measuring the impact of immersive learning content. Talespin is building a future of work where the distance between learning and execution is collapsed, enabling people to explore unique career paths that meet the needs of both businesses and individuals.
Read More