Applications are invited for a Temporary post of a Post-doctoral Research Fellow Level 2 within UCD School of Computer Science.

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), or concussion, is the most common type of traumatic brain injury. With mTBI comes symptoms that include headaches, fatigue, depression, anxiety, and irritability, as well as impaired cognitive function. Symptom resolution is thought to occur within 3 months post-injury, except for a small percentage of individuals who are said to experience persistent post-concussion syndrome. The number of individuals who experience persistent symptoms appears to be low despite clear evidence of longer-term pathophysiological changes resulting from mTBI.

UCD together with Contego Sports Ltd have established a new research programme, NProSend, focussed on the design and develop a computational head model (inclusive of N-Pro headgear) that can accurately predict the behaviour of the brain (specifically brain resonance patterns and transient development of stress and strain) when impacted according to typical Rugby-specific impact scenarios. We will deal with the identification and selection of sensor technologies (off-the-shelf) for the trial, contribution to the multi-modal specification and data analysis plans and identify ML models for the multi-modal datasets.

This is an advanced research focused role, building on your prior experience as a post-doctoral fellow, where you will conduct a specified programme of research supported by research training under the supervision and direction of a Principal Investigator.

The primary purpose of the role is to develop new or advanced research skills and competences, on the processes of publication in peer-reviewed academic publications and scholarly dissemination, the development of funding proposals, and the supervision and mentorship of graduate students along with the opportunity to develop your skills in research led teaching.

In addition to the Principal Duties and Responsibilities listed below, the successful candidate will also carry out the following duties specific to this project:

Post-doctoral Research Fellow Level 2 Salary range: 49,790 - 51,193 per annum.

Appointment on the above range will be dependent upon qualifications and experience.

Closing date: 17:00hrs (local Irish time) on 6th of June 2023.

Applications must be submitted by the closing date and time specified. Any applications which are still in progress at the closing time of 17:00hrs (Local Irish Time) on the specified closing date will be cancelled automatically by the system.

UCD are unable to accept late applications.

UCD do not require assistance from Recruitment Agencies. Any CV's submitted by Recruitment Agencies will be returned.

Prior to application, further information (including application procedure) should be obtained from the Work at UCD website: https://www.ucd.ie/workatucd/jobs/.

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Post-doctoral Research Fellow, School of Computer Science job ... - Times Higher Education

Zachary Porter, a rising junior in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, drowned Sunday, May 21, 2023, while walking on tidal mud flats near Hope, Alaska. He was 20.

Porter, from the Chicago suburb of Lake Bluff, Ill., was studying economics and mathematics in Arts & Sciences and computer science at the McKelvey School of Engineering.

Porter was a pitcher for the Washington University club baseball team, the Slayers; a member of Sigma Nu fraternity; a Campus Y volunteer at Wydown Middle School and local animal shelters; and a teaching assistant and tutor at McKelvey Engineering. His friends and he had many on every corner of campus say Porter possessed a boundless enthusiasm and innate talent for everything he tried, from data science to acoustic guitar.

Zach loved to challenge himself, said Aaron Held, Porters roommate. It wasnt just about getting good grades, which he did. It was about understanding the why behind everything he learned.

And he loved to help others, added fellow roommate Peter Nesin. On the weekends, Id roll out of bed at 11:30. And he would be like, I just got back from the pet shelter and now Im going to TA. Thats what made him happy.

Maria Canon, a senior lecturer in economics, observed Porters generous spirit in her econometrics course.

His passion to help others was reflected not only in his class project about the determinants of infant mortality, but also in how he helped classmates through his constructive feedback, Canon said. I remember reading the draft of another classmate and being surprised by the number of comments. Sure thing those were Zachs.

A talented athlete, Porter also loved sailing and was the Slayers top pitcher.

When Zach showed up for tryouts, it took one pitch and we were like, Oh yeah. Hes on the team, Slayers president Joseph Merkadeau said. He was clearly better than any pitcher on our team or anyone we would face.

But it was not Porters unhittable slider that endeared his teammates; it was his wry humor and easy nature. Porter managed the teams hilarious Twitter account and, on one memorable road trip, sang the entire Hamilton soundtrack note for note.

Hes always the first one to welcome the new guys and get people to come to events, Merkadeau said. The team will obviously be much worse without him there. It will also be less fun. He was the person who brought us together.

Porter is survived by his parents, Todd and Susan; and older sisters, Elizabeth and Sarah. Amemorial servicewas held on Sunday, May 28, on Sunrise Beach in Lake Bluff, Ill.The Porter family has startedThe Zachary Porter Foundation, currently maintained asThe Zachary Porter Fund, atthe Chicago Community Trust.The foundation willhelp subsidize enrichment activities, including music lessons, sports, park programs and outdoor field trips for kids who would not otherwise have access to these opportunities.In the longer term, The Zachary Porter Foundation aims to establish an outdoor space where species of all kinds can take refuge and children can learn about the natural world that Porter so deeply valued.

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Obituary: Zachary Porter, Arts & Sciences student, 20 - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis

Every time I try to solve a problem whether it be physics or computer science I always try to find an elegant solution, says MIT senior Thomas Bergamaschi, who spent four years learning how to solve problems while an Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) student in the Engineering Quantum Systems (EQUS) laboratory at MIT.

Of course, he adds, there are many times where a problem doesn't have an elegant solution, or finding an elegant solution is much harder than a normal solution, but it is something I always try to do, as it helps me understand at most something. Another compelling reason is that these solutions are usually the simplest to teach other people, which is always appealing to me.

Now, as thephysics and electrical engineering and computer science (EECS) major ponders post-graduation life, he believes hes ready to tackle challenges in his career as a software engineer at Five Rings, where he had an internship. There are a lot of hard and interesting problems to be solved there, he says. Challenges are something that fuels me.

STEM family

Born in Brazil, Bergamaschi lived in the United States until he was 6, when his family moved back to a small town in rural Sao Paulo called Vinhedo. His Brazilian father is a software engineer, and his mother, who is from England, studied biology in college and now teaches English. He followed in the footsteps of his older brother, Thiago, who was the first in the family to be drawn to physics. And when his brother entered physics competitions in high school, Thomas did too.

He had high school teachers who encouraged him to study physics beyond the usual curriculum. One teacher accompanied me on many bus and plane rides to physics competitions and classes, he recalls. She was a huge motivator for me to continue studying physics and helped find me new books and problems throughout high school.

The younger Bergamaschi went on to win silver medals at the International Physics Olympiad and at the International Young Physicists Tournament, and more than a dozen other medals in national and regional Brazilian science competitions in physics, math, and astronomy.

MIT Time

Thiago Bergamaschi '21 joined MIT as a physics and EECS major in 2017, and his brother wasnt far behind him, entering MIT in 2019.

Bergamaschi ended up spending nearly all four years at MIT as a UROP student in the Engineering Quantum Systems (EQUS) laboratory, under the supervision of PhD student Tim Menke and Professor William Oliver. Thats when he was introduced to quantum computing his supervisors were constructing a device that had a phenomenon where many qubits could interact simultaneously.

This type of interaction is very useful for quantum computers, as it gives us a possible way that we can map problems we are interested in onto a quantum computer, he says. My project was to try to answer the question of how we can actually measure things, and prove that the constructed device actually had this coupling term we were interestedin.

He proposed and analyzed methods to experimentally detect many-body quantum systems. These systems are extremely important and interesting as they have many cool applications, and in particular can be used to map computationally hard problems such as route optimization, Boolean satisfiability, and more to quantum computers in an easy way.

This project was supposed to be a warmup project for his UROP. However, we soon noticed that the problem of accurately measuring these effects was a pretty tricky problem. I ended up working on this problem for around six months my summer, the fall semester, and the beginning of IAP [Independent Activities Period] trying to figure out how we can measure these effects.

He presented his research at the 2021 and 2022 American Physical Society March meetings, and published Distinguishing multi-spin interactions from lower-order effects in Physical Review Applied.

The experience of presenting my work in a conference and publishing a paper is a huge highlight from my time at MIT and gave me a taste of scientific communication and research, which was invaluable for me, Bergamaschi says. Being able to do research with the help of Tim Menke and Professor Oliver was inspiring, and is one of the largest highlights from my time at MIT.

He also worked with William Isaac Jay, a postdoc at the MIT Center for Theoretical Physics, on lattice quantum field theory. He studies quantum theories at the microscopic level, where strong nuclear interactions are relevant. This is particularly appealing as we can simulate these theories on a computer albeit usually a huge supercomputer and try to make predictions about phenomena involving atoms at a minuscule scale. I UROP'd in this lab over both my junior and senior year, and my project involved implementing techniques from one of these computer simulations, how can we go back to the real world and obtain something that an experiment would measure.

Brazil blues

Bergamaschi missed Brazil but found community playing soccer with intramural teamsOusadia and Alegria Futebol Clube, and eating churrasco with his friends at Oliveiras Brazilian-style steakhouse in Somerville, Massachusetts. He also loved going to college with his brother, who graduated in 2021 and is now pursuing his PhD in physics at the University of California at Berkeley.

One of my favorite memories of MIT is from my sophomore spring, when I managed to take two classes with him just before he graduated, he recalls. It was a lot of fun discussing physics problem sets and projects with him.

What also keeps him in touch with his homeland is working with Brazilian high school students competing in physics tournaments. He is part of an academiccommittee that creates and grades the physics problems taken by the top 100 Brazilian high school students. Those with top scores go on to the International Physics Olympiad. He says he sees this as a way to pay forward what his high school teacher did for him: to encourage others to study physics.

These olympiads were one of the main reasons for my interest in physics and me coming to MIT, and I hope that other Brazilian students can have these same opportunities as I had, he says. These students are all incredibly talented. A large amount of them end up coming to MIT after they graduate high school, so its a very gratifying and incredible experience for me to be able to participate and help in their physics education.

Post-graduation thoughts

What will he miss most at MIT? Late-night problem set sessions immediately before a deadline, trying to find a free food event across campus, and getting banana lounge bananas and coffee.

And what were his biggest lessons? He says that MIT taught him how to work with other people, handle imposter syndrome, and most importantly, unravel complicated challenges.

I think one of my major motivators is my desire to learn new things, whether it be physics or computer science. So, I am a big fan of very difficult problems or projects which require continual work but have large payoffs at the end. I think there are many instances during my time at MIT in which I worked all night for a project, just to get up and hop back on because of the excitement ofobtaining a result or solution.

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Fueled by problem-solving | MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of ... - MIT News

After six years working at a rental car company at the airport, Dayne Burns approached his 30s longing for a change.

So, it felt like fate in early 2021 when he saw Morehouse College in Atlanta was offering online classes. In promotional materials, the school touted its mission to serve prospective students like Burns, one of the millions of Black men in America who started college but never graduated. Beyond offering a degree, Morehouse was offering a second chance.

To help more men like you transform into the leaders they were meant to be, weve created an empowering, affordable educational experience thats accessible from anywhere in the country, said the Morehouse Online website.

For Burns, the opportunity to complete his studies at one of the nations top historically Black colleges and universities from his home in South Carolina felt like a way to turn everything around.

After being accepted, the setbacks started quickly and kept coming. Burns learned the advertised computer science degree wasnt ready. Only after starting classes did he discover that about half his college credits had not transferred, making him a freshman when he expected to be almost a junior. Confusion about the financial aid process led to Burns and others being dropped from classes a few weeks into his summer term.

After a year in the program, with the computer science degree yet to launch, Burns decided he was done.

This was a cash grab. I feel like they saw an opportunity and they knew that they could leverage their name, Burns said. One day, if they take it serious enough, this program could be something. But right now they wanted to get by on Were Morehouse. Give us your money. And well figure out the rest.

Burns frustration is with Morehouse, but the school isnt solely responsible for the program. Morehouse Online is a partnership between the 156-year-old institution and 2U, a for-profit education tech company that helps operate degree programs at institutions including Yale; University of California, Berkeley; and Emerson College.

Online program managers, of which 2U is among the most prominent, offer an enticing service for colleges looking to boost their enrollment numbers or add offerings because they take on much of the upfront work and cost of building an online program. The arrangements could be particularly alluring for HBCUs, which studies show have been chronically underfunded compared to other colleges.

In return for footing the upfront costs, the company also at times keeps a majority of the revenue. Under its agreement with Morehouse, 2U receives 60% of the programs revenue for up to a decade, according to the college.

Concerns over online program managers have been building for years. Critics say the revenue-sharing model incentivizes both partners to push for higher enrollment than a university can serve. Online program managers have less federal oversight than colleges, which education advocates say leaves them free to prioritize profits over student success.

The U.S. Education Department in February moved to expand the definition of third-party servicers to include companies such as 2U, a step that would require universities to disclose when they work with online program managers and subject them to further regulations. 2U is suing to block the expanded definition, saying the label has traditionally applied only to parties involved in financial aid. The department is considering revisions to its guidance.

Morehouse is the only all-mens historically Black college in the country and counts among its graduates Martin Luther King Jr., director Spike Lee and numerous congressmen and Cabinet secretaries. In launching the online program, the school and 2U offered returning students the opportunity to join that elite brotherhood and become a Morehouse Man for roughly half the price of an on-campus degree.

More than 5,000 people inquired about the program within three days of the February 2021 announcement, a school official said at the time. Morehouse Provost Kendrick Brown told USA TODAY that the school had expected to enroll fewer than 100 online students that first year. Faced with such high interest, it accepted twice that number in the first semester alone.

Morehouse and 2U have struggled to meet the demand, leaving students to pay the price. The school and 2U advertised the computer science major that caught Burns eye, only to shelve plans for the degree months later. Morehouse had intended to launch up to six majors within two years, but still offers just one: business administration.

Even then, the school has yet to develop all the classes for that program and is filling in the gaps by sending students to other schools. One Morehouse adviser is responsible for all of the programs students.

Current and former Morehouse online students who spoke with USA TODAY largely said they chose to share their frustrations because they support the college, believe the online program has potential and want to see improvements for future students. Even many with complaints praised the quality of the classes and said they have made meaningful connections with fellow students. Some students said the program has met their expectations.

Im happy I did it, and Im going to stick through it and see it forward. I think its amazing, the platform for learning about my own culture and learning about myself, said Teddy Dukuly, a 32-year-old clerical associate at the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. He cited a class on the history of Black entrepreneurship as particularly rewarding.

But many students also described persistent problems and setbacks, including some that mean it could take them longer and cost more to graduate than they had planned.

Last month, more than three-dozen online students signed a letter to Morehouse administrators saying that they were deeply concerned about a number of issues such as limited class availability, seemingly arbitrary acceptance of transfer credits and a lack of student support including high turnover among 2U-assigned advisers.

The students asked for a meeting with administrators and a written plan to address the problems.

We also ask that this plan give us a detailed sense even if the ideas are not final of where the online program is heading over the next 3 to 5 years with respect to projected enrollment, dedicated faculty and staffing, student support, degree program expansion and course offerings, the May 8 letter says.

The following week, a few days after USA TODAY informed the school of its plans to publish this article, Brown acknowledged to online students in an email that the schools entry into online learning has progressed more slowly than initially planned.

The provost said the school always planned to roll out the program in phases but faculty had to adjust classes to account for the non-traditional, degree-completion learning needs of Morehouse Online students. He listed nine classes currently in development, four of them required for graduation. He has instructed the schools records department to accept transfer courses from accredited colleges, he said, to fulfill those requirements.

Brown also said the school is hiring two program directors to support and advise students in the online program, and will launch a newsletter to keep students updated.

I have appreciated the grace many of you have extended to us as we strive to continually meet your learning needs so that you can complete your education, he wrote.

Christopher Chip Paucek, co-founder and CEO of 2U, praised the companys partnership with Morehouse and said it is normal for colleges to launch programs that are still being developed. But he stressed that Morehouse alone enrolls students, decides when a degree should be marketed and develops the curriculum. He said 2U launched the program on their timeline, with their approval.

Its our job to support the students through the program, Paucek told USA TODAY. But you know, obviously, they control the development of the courses, they control the approval of the courses, they control the timeline of the programs. And in this particular case, are there challenges in setting up these programs? Of course. We stand behind our partner in trying to face those challenges.

In a message earlier this week informing 2U employees of this impending article, Paucek said Morehouse Online was the colleges first entry into online learning and acknowledged that 2U has much less experience with undergraduate education programs conditions that resulted in some real operational challenges as the program was getting up and running. Paucek also criticized news coverage of his company as a predetermined narrative. He said that generally both Morehouse and 2U are pleased with the program, bumps aside.

Morehouse and 2U officials both described the program as an innovative and, at roughly $14,000 for tuition annually, affordable way for Black men to finish their degrees. Students can go at their own pace, and most in the program are taking classes part time. So far, just over 600 men have been accepted and taken at least one class, with approximately 325 enrolled in the most recent semester, according to the college.

Some students told USA TODAY they never thought they would be a Morehouse Man at this stage of their lives. For others those who started at Morehouse in their teens but didnt finish the online program is a chance to fulfill a long-stalled dream.

Paul Carr, 48, dropped out of Morehouse a few credits shy of graduating in 1997 but still considers his Morehouse classmates family. His children refer to his closest Morehouse brothers as uncle. He called the school one of the last places in the country where young Black men can learn in a safe space, unapologetically, without being attacked for their race or having to apologize for being excellent.

Carr recently skipped what would have been his 25-year class reunion because he wasnt really part of that graduating class. Not finishing had always stung.

I wanted to finish my degree and have integrity, he said.

But two years since enrolling in Morehouse Online, that hope has been replaced by disappointment.

Im not done, he said. And I have no idea when Im going to be done.

On an earnings call the week after Morehouse Online was announced, Paucek stressed that 2U was aiming to get better and faster at launching new programs.

You can see that in the case of an expectation of Morehouse to actually serve students this calendar year, even though we just announced it, Paucek said on the February 2021 call. If we can keep driving higher quality programs and get them rolling faster, thats better for our schools, better for our students.

Within Morehouse, some faculty worried the company and university were moving too fast.

Keith Hollingsworth, a business administration professor at the school, was chairman of a faculty committee that approved new courses.

$1 for the first 3 months.

He said some faculty initially had concerns about working with an outside company. But they ultimately approved the business administration degree in May 2021, about three months after Morehouse and 2U announced the program.

Meanwhile, the computer science degree languished in the universitys bureaucracy.

Hollingsworth said faculty members were surprised at the demand for the business degree and wanted to assess the quality of that program before launching another. They also worried about offering a second degree while business classes were still being developed.

The group ultimately sent the computer science proposal back to the computer science department for review.

You cannot offer it if the faculty hadnt approved it, and the faculty were still talking their way through it, Hollingsworth said. I dont know how 2U felt about that, but it really didnt matter. We cannot offer things that have not been approved yet.

The lack of faculty buy-in didnt stop Morehouse and 2U from continuing to promote the computer science degree. In marketing materials, they said the program would prepare students for graduate studies or entry into the workforce as a computer science professional at the highest level possible.

Youll be more than just a leader in computer science, the schools website said. Youll be a Morehouse Man.

Students planning to study computer science said they didnt find out the degree wasnt available until they were about to begin classes in August 2021. Several students told USA TODAY that those who planned to enroll in the program were assured the major was still coming and that they could transfer when it launched.

It was just really upsetting because you guys accepted me to do this, Burns said. And even when they realized they didnt have the computer science program, they never stopped advertising about it.

By September 2021, the school had added a disclaimer to its website that the major was pending approval by the Morehouse College Faculty and Board of Trustees, according to a digital archive of the programs website. Soon, after advertising it for roughly six months, computer science was no longer mentioned.

As the first students enrolled, the high demand and limited class options created a bottleneck. A Morehouse administrator notified students by email that some would likely see changes to their schedules.

We are trying to maximize our course schedules based on the overwhelming response in registering in our new online program, the official wrote. With the increased response, we have found that our courses are filling up so we are trying to accommodate as many of you as we can.

Kedric Benefield, a 47-year-old Morehouse Online student who lives near Atlanta and first attended Morehouse in 1993, said it has been unclear to many students what classes they need to graduate and when those classes will be available. From the start, he said, Morehouse did not lay out a clear path to graduation a phrase multiple students used in interviews with USA TODAY.

Benefield persevered and is among the students nearing graduation in business administration in the programs second year. But he has gotten there by taking six classes at Atlanta Metropolitan State College, a neighboring public college, through a partnership Morehouse entered with the institution.

He plans to take two of his last three classes at the Indiana Institute of Technology and Wesleyan College, a small womens college in Georgia, through another partnership Morehouse forged in April with an online course-sharing platform. In an email to students, the school said the option would allow them to graduate in a timely fashion.

Whats really disappointing to me is my last classes that I need for graduation wont be from Morehouse, Benefield said. The one degree that youre offering, you dont have the classes.

Brown, Morehouses provost, told USA TODAY that the first seven students graduated from the program last month. Brown said the school hopes to roll out two additional majors in the next academic year.

As for the computer science major, Brown said it is not atypical for a program to be promoted ahead of final approvals, especially when approval appears to be imminent. But he said that ultimately the school wanted to ensure the integrity of the program and that faculty believed it wouldnt meet the needs of non-traditional students.

Brown said the university tried to be forthcoming with students about the change in plans. He said the school apologized to students who signed up for the major and offered them refunds or the chance to enroll in the business administration degree.

Morehouse is committed to delivering an exceptional educational experience and was therefore willing to forego offering a degree program to preserve the highest quality experience, he said in a statement to USA TODAY.

When 2U launched in 2008, there were few prominent universities online and even fewer companies helping them translate in-person classes to digital spaces. It went public six years later after signing up nine academic partners which the company says have multiplied to more than 185 today. It also acquired edX, a nonprofit focused on free online courses, for $800 million in 2021.

As 2U has grown, so have criticisms of the company.

Last month, graduates of the University of Southern Californias online masters in social work sued the school, claiming its program, in partnership with 2U, is a degree mill. The suit alleges that the university has largely hidden 2Us involvement.

Though 2U is not named in the suit, its legal counsel Matthew J. Norden told USA TODAY the company reviewed the lawsuit and its internal records and said the claims are completely without merit. In a statement, university spokeswoman Lauren Bartlett said USC has one accredited Master of Social Work program that is, delivered through on-campus and online options.

We look forward to defending this matter in court, Bartlett said.

Ashley Bell, a former professor at Arcadia University, said that when 2U set up a virtual physician assistant program for the school, the company pushed the college to accept 65 students, beyond the typical class size for such programs, then failed to deliver the resources needed to serve the extra demand.

The quality of the program was simply not a concern to the (online program manager), she said during public comments at the March Education Department listening session related to the agencys proposed regulations.

At the same session, academic leaders also praised 2U. Helen Drinan, interim president of Pennsylvanias Cabrini University, said working with the company has allowed her institution to recruit students in new markets, bringing in much-needed revenue. She said that Cabrini couldnt have afforded to front the capital for online recruiting.

We only pay for 2Us services once we enroll and then reenroll students, Drinan said. We and 2U are together engaged in supporting persistence to graduation because it pays off for our students, for the university, and for 2U.

Among the services 2U provides its partners are student success advisers 2U employees who regularly check in with students in the program.

Two former 2U advisers told USA TODAY that despite what their job title implied, they often felt powerless to provide meaningful assistance to students. They said they mostly acted as go-betweens, connecting students with university departments, and as quasi-therapists to students struggling with personal challenges, a role for which they felt unprepared.

Because calls are recorded, they felt limited in how forthcoming they could be with students frustrated with their programs.

The former employees, who USA TODAY agreed not to name because they signed nondisclosure agreements with 2U, said the company in recent years increased its focus on hitting metrics goals, a shift one described as going from providing whatever the student needs to telling students what they need to keep them enrolled.

At times she told students more classes would be available from a university, she said, even if she did not know or believe that to be true. Students occasionally brought up taking a leave of absence from their studies. But even if the adviser felt that was in their best interest, she said she was required to follow guidelines and talking points aimed at keeping students enrolled.

The other past adviser said she was required to call students on leave as often as every 30 days, a practice she found extremely invasive, especially since some were taking time off for medical reasons.

I would safely say it felt more and more like a call center, she said.

As at a call center, 2U employees use software that alters their area codes to local numbers a Georgia area code when calling Morehouse Online students. Employee emails end in online.morehouse.edu.

Several Morehouse Online students told USA TODAY they were unaware when they were dealing with 2U staff, and some only learned from reporters that advisers they believed worked for the college actually worked for 2U.

Oh, wow, Burns said. That would explain why it felt like all of our student advisers were clueless themselves.

In his email last month to students, Brown pointed out that 2U employees are not academic advisers and said students should contact Morehouse staff with any academic questions.

Paucek told USA TODAY the company has never hidden its role but that going forward it will recommend to its partners that employees identify themselves more clearly. He also rejected criticism that the companys business model can lead to over enrollment, or that that is what happened with Morehouse Online. He said it takes years for 2U to receive a return on the investment of setting up a new program, and that only happens if students succeed.

This discussion, its a little forest from trees, he said. Were talking about a program that is 50% of the campus cost, creating access for people to attend one of the most important HBCUs ... in the United States. We hope it scales tremendously to help solve the problem. And we launched it on their timeline with their approval. And I think we did it pretty well.

Jay Davis, a 44-year-old Morehouse Online student who lives in Los Angeles, said it often feels as though his 2U adviser is figuring out things about the program at the same time as he is once with disastrous consequences.

A few weeks after he started classes in summer 2022, Davis said he got an email from the Morehouse financial aid office telling him to pay his balance due or be dropped. Davis, who believed that he had until the end of the term to pay, said his 2U adviser suggested the email was not a firm deadline.

Davis missed the cut off. Soon after, he went to log in for a class and found he no longer had access. Burns told USA TODAY that he similarly was unexpectedly dropped during the summer 2022 term because of confusion over financial aid. A professor who taught Spanish that summer said that about half of his class was dropped because of the mix-up. Davis took the fall off to save money before reenrolling, an eight-month delay in his studies.

For Davis, who had dropped out of Dillard University a small historically Black school in New Orleans in 2000 after he ran out of money, the poor guidance he received from his 2U adviser was about more than lost time. It was crushing, he said.

Your mind starts replaying what happened to you 20 years ago, he said. And all that doubt starts rising up to the top: Oh, you know, this just wasnt for you. Youll never finish school.

When Morehouse Online students get fed up with the programs growing pains, they often turn to one another for support through an online messaging group. Recently, the chat was flooded with students trying to piece together when classes they need would be available and venting about the school outsourcing courses to other institutions when they were promised a Morehouse education.

Benefield and others also formed a nonprofit to streamline communication with the university. The group in February 2022 sent a letter to the university administration outlining issues including the lack of course availability. In response, university officials held a town hall.

But Fred Quinn, 31, an online student who first attended Morehouse in 2009, said a university official also responded by telling the group to stop fundraising using Morehouses name after they had gathered donations to support students in need, such as those who had family members pass away.

We clearly love the school, said Quinn, who is transferring to another college this fall. We want this program to succeed, but there are brothers who are suffering in this process, and thats the last thing we need to come back to school to do.

Many of the students earlier attempts to earn their degrees were waylaid by unexpected life events and the complexity of higher education. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, roughly 2.2 million Black men 25 or older in America have some college credits but no degree. Morehouse and 2U officials stressed the desire to serve this demographic when they articulated their vision for the program.

Quinn said he failed to finish his first time at Morehouse when he missed a financial aid deadline following his grandfathers death in 2011 and returned from the funeral to find his belongings in the hallway outside his dorm room. Another student has taken classes for years at various institutions during breaks in military service but never had the time to fully commit to finishing a degree. Others said they became overwhelmed by the academic rigors and bureaucratic hurdles of higher education when they first enrolled.

Carr, the online student who was a few credits shy of graduating from Morehouse College in 1997, left school when his girlfriend became pregnant. He planned to take a one-semester break. Then life picked up the pace marriage, two more kids, a career and one semester stretched into 24 years.

Carr found success without a degree thanks to his grandmother, who started homes for at-risk youth and adults with mental illnesses in Detroit, a family business he now helps operate. But Carr never gave up on graduating.

When Morehouse announced its online degree completion program, it seemed like a perfect fit. Carr assumed he would be able to complete the political science degree he had started in 1993, especially given assurances by both Morehouse and 2U staff that more majors would be added.

I kept getting pitched that the political science department would be coming later, So just hold tight. Meanwhile, take these classes. And so thats what I did, he said.

That included paying for a class that Carr said he was later told he shouldnt have been enrolled in because he had taken an equivalent class during his time on campus.

Carr said it wasnt until he was well into the program that he realized a political science degree likely wouldnt materialize soon. If it doesnt, most of his political science credits do not apply to the business administration degree he is enrolled in, so it could take him at least another year and a half to finish.

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HBCU's online program littered with pitfalls at students expense - USA TODAY

The growing use of technology across job functions is designed to streamline processes, boost productivity, improve customer service and reduce costs. Unfortunately, it can also discourage job seekers from applying for positions because of concerns that they lack the right tech skills.

And its not just in tech-specific roles. Today, marketers are expected to have experience in coding, data analytics and UX design; financial services roles increasingly require experience with programming languages such as Python and MATLAB; and even health care professionals benefit when they have a better understanding of Epic, the leading electronic health record system in the U.S.

To prepare the workforce for the jobs of the future and reduce the tech skills confidence gap, companies must play a greater role helping educate emerging talent in schools. This will provide more people with opportunities to build their tech competency, giving them the confidence to pursue careers they might otherwise find out of reach. Even more importantly, it will help build the tech-ready workforce the country desperately needs.

Public-private partnerships can build a strong tech foundation

While many think younger Americans are digital natives with tech skills that go far beyond social media, research shows this often isnt the case.

A Dell study found over a third of Gen Z felt that their school education did not prepare them with the technology skills needed for their planned career and 56 percent received either very basic or no digital skills training. When it comes to the tech workforce specifically, a CompTIA study of 18-34 year-olds revealed a confidence gap that is discouraging them from pursuing tech careers.

In the U.S, K-12 public schools often have limited resources and time to go beyond the basic curriculum of English Language Arts and math, especially in the elementary grades. This is where leading businesses can help fill the tech skills gap.

While companies may not be able to directly influence whats taught in the classroom, there are opportunities to work with school districts to offer access to tech experts, lessons, materials and other resources such as financial assistance.

The following ideas are thought starters to help companies develop programs that work best for their business and community.

Elementary School (Grades K-6)

In the elementary grades, educators often focus on teaching technology basics such as search techniques, password management and digital citizenship. These are all important skills, but theres an opportunity to go further as emerging tech becomes more user-friendly and accessible to everyone.

Coding, artificial intelligence and augmented reality have become more mainstream, making it easier for educators to not only incorporate these disciplines into lesson plans, but teach them to their students.

Corporate learning and development can play a pivotal role by partnering with school districts to provide professional development to teachers so they can work with students each day, offering to run after-school coding classes to reinforce students learning and planning fun tech competitions to give students an opportunity to exhibit what skills they learned.

Because even the youngest students ask why they need to know certain skills, business and learning leaders can also help teachers make the connection between the tech being used in the classroom and whats happening in the real world using their companies as examples.

Finally, theres an opportunity to provide administrators and teachers with informational sessions on everything from how to stay safe from cyber security threats to responsible use of AI chatbots like ChatGPT. As technology rapidly advances, these early introductions in students education can give them a significant head start toward rewarding careers.

Secondary School (Grades 7-12)

Across the U.S., 53 percent of public high schools offer foundational computer science classes, but participation can be unequal, especially among underrepresented groups such as girls and economically disadvantaged students.

One issue is that even young people dont understand that coding programs have become more accessible and intuitive, and that coding skills can be put to many uses from building websites and apps to creating digital art. Another issue is that districts may not advocate coding programs because they dont have enough funds and staff, or administrators dont see the value.

Theres an opportunity for companies to step in to help educate students, parents, teachers and administrators about the computer science field to help overcome these obstacles. They can also connect students with computer science professionals through mentor programs, tech fairs, school assembly presentations and on-site company visits.

In fact, a Gallup report found that students with computer science role models are over 10x more likely to say they will pursue a computer science career than students without.

The journey needs to continue in higher ed

Its not just young job seekers who have a lack of confidence when it comes to workforce preparation. Employers also feel the next generation isnt ready.

While most organizations value a college degree, they also express that higher education institutions need to make more progress in getting students ready for the corporate world, including developing better tech and soft skills.

Students are eager and see the value as well. According to a Cengage study, 66 percent of college graduates want more real world work experiences and believe colleges should prioritize school-sponsored co-ops and internships as well as mentorships and introductions to local businesses.

But the onus shouldnt fall solely on colleges and universities to provide these opportunities. Instead, business and learning leaders can take a few steps to help build better partnerships in higher education by:

Theres a long way to go before the tech skills confidence gap is a thing of the past, and the route to get there can seem overwhelming. But inaction will only allow the problem to grow as tech increasingly becomes more advanced and pervasive in our workplaces.

If corporations want to have a tech-savvy future workforce, theyll need to fully collaborate with educators now to build a solid tech background that starts early in a childs life and continues throughout their educational journey and beyond.

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Overcoming the tech skills confidence gap - Chief Learning Officer