PowerSchool Joins Over 500 CEOs and Nonprofit Leaders in Call to Prioritize Computer Science Education in K-12 Schools

PowerSchool stands in support of Code.org’s initiative to prioritize computer science curriculum as a key to expanding opportunities for students and schools nationwide.

FOLSOM, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--PowerSchool (NYSE: PWSC), the leading provider of cloud-based software for K-12 education in North America, joins 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 governments and education leaders to "update the K-12 curriculum in each state, for every student in every school to have the opportunity to learn computer science."

The coalition behind this effort is unprecedented in U.S. education, uniting the leaders and founders of large tech companies together with CEOs of companies across sectors, as well as national education organizations. As a signatory to this letter, PowerSchool stands in support of Code.org’s call for prioritizing computer science education and passionately believes that computer science curriculum is key to expanding knowledge and opportunities for students and schools nationwide.

“Access to expanded computer science curriculum will help ensure that students are able to realize their full potential, in their own way,” said Hardeep Gulati, CEO of PowerSchool. “Computer science education has transformed my life personally and has the potential to transform millions, if not billions, of lives in the coming decades.”

Over the last decade, all 50 states have taken action to expand access to computer science, including allowing computer science to count toward core graduation requirements, funding professional learning to train more teachers, and creating clear certification pathways for computer science teachers. Yet today, the United States has over 700,000 open computing jobs, but only 80,000 computer science graduates a year, and only 5% of high school students study computer science.

"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. The United States has seen tremendous momentum behind this idea, and today's announcement makes it clear that the time for action is now. 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."

About PowerSchool

PowerSchool (NYSE: PWSC) is the leading provider of cloud-based software for K-12 education in North America. Its mission is to power the education ecosystem with unified technology that helps educators and students realize their full potential, in their way. PowerSchool connects students, teachers, administrators, and parents, with the shared goal of improving student outcomes. From the office to the classroom to the home, it helps schools and districts efficiently manage state reporting and related compliance, special education, finance, human resources, talent, registration, attendance, funding, learning, instruction, grading, assessments and analytics in one unified platform. PowerSchool supports over 45 million students globally and more than 14,000 customers, including over 90 of the top 100 districts by student enrollment in the United States, and sells solutions in over 90 countries. Visit www.powerschool.com to learn more.

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. Their 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.