Hartford Business Journal

16 Hartford Business Journal • February 18, 2019 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Sean Teehan steehan@hartfordbusiness.com W hile introducing key players on his economic- development team recently, Gov. Ned Lamont made it a point to mention the state's win last year in convincing India-based tech giant Infosys to open an innovation hub in Hartford, where the company plans to hire about 1,000 new workers over the next few years. Those are precisely the 21st-century digital jobs Connecticut wants to see more of, but tech jobs require tech talent and the state is currently experiencing a significant worker shortage in this area. In fact, recent data from nonprofit Code.org show there are more than 5,500 open computing jobs in the state, while Connecticut only pro- duced 533 college graduates in 2017 with computer-science degrees. In recent months, members of Lamont's transition teams, as well as some state lawmakers seem to be reaching a consensus: In order to develop an in-state labor pool capable of filling jobs at Infosys and other tech firms, more K-12 public-school stu- dents will need IT training. That's leading to a push to require computer-science courses in schools across Connecticut, which would be a major — and potentially costly — change for a public-education system that currently lacks qualified IT teachers. Lamont's transition teams focused on education and the economy pro- posed requiring computer science in all public schools, while a bipartisan bill in the state Senate would require creation of a statewide K-12 computer- science curriculum by next year, to be implemented by 2022. "If we don't have the employees available for these employers, we're not going to give them the opportunity to meet the goals that they have and the ability to grow," said state Senate Minority Leader Pro Tempore Kevin Witkos (R-Canton), who introduced the computer-science curriculum bill with Democratic state Sen. James Maroney. "So we want to make sure that we have our workforce educated in the skills that our employers are looking for." State Department of Labor (DOL) data show 15,000 computer-related jobs — ranging from systems analysts to app developers — will be available in Connecticut over the next decade. As of 2016, there were just under 49,000 people working IT jobs in the state, and the DOL estimates that number will grow to about 55,000 by 2026. And those jobs won't simply be com- ing from software or IT firms. Compa- nies in many traditional industries in Connecticut — from health care and insurance to manufacturing — will in- creasingly rely on IT skills as technol- ogy continues to reshape the economy. Demand for Connecticut employees with computer-science skills is nearly three times the national rate, according to Code.org. Rhode Island's model If Connecticut integrates com- puter science into public schools' core curriculum it will be one of about 45 states taking such action, said Sheela VanHoose, director of state govern- ment affairs at Code.org, a nonprofit that works to expand access to com- puter science in schools. "We joke, 'computer science mania is sweeping the country,' " VanHoose said. "Policymakers are really start- ing to look at how computer science becomes fundamental to not only our economy, but our communities." Among states VanHoose sees at the forefront of K-12 computer-science instruction is Connecticut's neighbor to the east. In fact, documents from Lamont's education policy transition commit- tee specifically mention Rhode Island's program, which splits the task of providing computer-science educa- tion between their state Department of Education, K-12 schools, colleges, private industry and nonprofits. Fran Rabinowitz, executive direc- tor of the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents, who co- chaired Lamont's education transition committee, said she sees a lot to like in Rhode Island's model. Connecticut Coding Push As CT faces tech-worker shortages, momentum builds for K-12 computer-science curriculum mandate Rebecca Shomo leads Farmington High School's science department, which offers several computer-science courses related to developing apps and Java programming. State and tech-industry officials say more K-12 students need to learn IT skills to meet the growing demand for tech workers. HBJ PHOTO | BILL MORGAN

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