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Students to Learn App Design with Swift Programming Online

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 10/22/18

Earlier this year a nonprofit that trains high school students in technical skills joined up with a local online college to enroll 25 seniors in a course to learn programming. Based on the success of that program, the organizations have announced plans to expand the effort to more students across the country. Genesys Works teamed up with Columbia College Chicago Online to deliver online Swift coding programs for local students, using K-12 curriculum created by Apple for its Everyone Can Code initiative and resources created by the college.

The results of that earlier effort was an eight-week program, "App Design with Swift Programming," which teaches learners to develop mobile apps. This is the first of three courses that the college also includes as part of two different certificate programs, one focused on mobile app development and the other on iOS app development with Swift.

Now Genesys Works plans to extend the program nationally. "With this new track, we are able to provide our students with the digital skills they need to compete in today's workforce," said Liz Rafferty, executive director for Genesys Works Chicago, in a statement. "Through partnerships with Chicago Public Schools, Columbia College Online and collaboration with Apple, we are serving Chicago's students better and building a strong talent pipeline for our local corporations."

Columbia Online said it would also be offering three scholarships for online courses to Genesys Works students, allowing the recipients to enroll in any of the college's online  courses, including two new ones starting on Oct. 22: Foundations of Swift Coding and iOS and Data Visualization Using Excel and Tableau.

The announcements came during a special event marking the one-year anniversary of Genesys Works' collaboration with Apple and the city of Chicago to deliver Everyone Can Code curriculum to almost 500,000 students in Chicago's schools. The organization also provides participants with technical and professional skills training, paid internships at Chicago businesses and agencies, college and career coaching and alumni support to and through college. Chicago Public Schools is in the third of a three-year contract with Genesys Works to place trained college interns who are CPS alumni in schools that need extra technology support.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

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