RadarFirst Joins 500+ CEOs to Prioritize Computer Science in K-12 Schools

Today RadarFirst joined national nonprofit organization Code.org and over 500 of the nation’s top industry, nonprofit, and education leaders to issue a letter calling on state and district leaders to update the K-12 curriculum in each state, for every student in every school to have the opportunity to learn computer science.

Over the last decade, the U.S. has expanded access to computer science (CS) – the country has allowed it to count toward core graduation requirements, funded professional learning to train more teachers, and created clear certification pathways for CS teachers. However, there is still more work to be done.

The need for CS to be included as a core education requirement has united leaders and founders of large tech companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Amazon, together with CEOs of companies across sectors – including American Express, Nike, Starbucks, Delta Airlines, AT&T, UPS, Walgreens, and Hasbro. These businesses have joined in support alongside national education organizations such as Khan Academy, the American Federation of Teachers, and the National Education Association.

“Every industry is impacted by digital technology, yet not every student has the opportunity to learn how technology works,” said Code.org CEO Hadi Partovi. “Today, computer science should be a core subject, just like basic biology or algebra… We must ensure that standards and the curricula used across the country prioritize computer science so that all students, particularly from underrepresented backgrounds, have the opportunity to participate in our digital economy.”

Why should computer science be required for all K – 12 students?

Every industry is impacted by digital technology and subject to the data privacy rules and regulations that may apply. Computer science needs to be a larger part of our K-12 curriculums so that every student can understand how technology works.

The United States is seen as a leader in technology, however, only 5% of high school students study CS. 

As we rethink education in light of the global pandemic, it’s become clear that computer science needs to be a core part of education. Food for thought provided from CEOs for CS:

→ During pandemic closures, America funded laptops for 90% of students to learn from home. As schools have reopened, we can now use those laptops to teach computer science.

→ Remote work expands opportunity. Graduates no longer need to leave their state to pursue careers in tech – opening many doors for graduates, no matter their location.  

→ Nearly two-thirds of high-skilled immigration is for computer scientists. The USA has over 690,000 open computing jobs but only 80,000 computer science graduates a year. We need to educate American students as a matter of national competitiveness.

About Code.org

Code.org is a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to computer science in schools and increasing participation by young women and students from other underrepresented groups. Our vision is that every student in every school has the opportunity to learn computer science as part of their core K-12 education. The leading provider of K-12 computer science curriculum in the largest school districts in the United States, Code.org also created the annual Hour of Code campaign, which has engaged more than 15% of all students in the world.

About RadarFirst

In today’s world of increasingly complex and changing privacy regulations, RadarFirst offers innovative software solutions to data privacy challenges. With RadarFirst, the patented SaaS-based incident response management platform, organizations make consistent, defensible breach notification decisions in half the time. The Radar Breach Guidance Engine™ profiles and scores data privacy incidents and generates incident-specific notification recommendations to help ensure compliance with data breach laws as well as contractual notification obligations. Privacy leaders around the globe rely on RadarFirst for an efficient, consistent, and defensible solution for privacy incident response. Learn more at radarfirst.com.