Category: Lab News

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CRC Lab Members Participate in LaTeX Workshop

On October 3, 2017, members of the Culturally Relevant Computing (CRC) Lab at Morehouse College participated in a training workshop for LaTeX, a high tech document preparation system for technical and scientific documents. This system is free to users and is setting the standard for publication of scientific documents.  Students were given an overview of the functionality and capabilities of the software, as well as offered an opportunity to answer any questions related to initiation of use. Some of the topics covered included: formatting mathematical equations; the addition of tables, figures, and pictures; overall document formatting, and how this all relates to basic coding.

The workshop was facilitated by Earl Huff, Jr., a PhD student in Human-Centered Computing at Clemson University, under the advisement of Dr. Kinnis Gosha.  Mr. Huff’s research areas include Human-Computer Interaction, Artificial Intelligence, and Applied Machine Learning.  As a part of the Culturally Relevant Computing Lab, Mr. Huff is afforded the opportunity to educate undergraduate students on technologies that will be of benefit to their academic growth, while supporting the vision of the lab.

 

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NSF Grant Awarded for Minority Faculty Mentorship Program

Dr. Kinnis Gosha, the founder of the Culturally Relevant Computing Lab at Morehouse College, will serve as co-Principal Investigator of the Increasing Minority Presence within Academia through Continuous Training (Impact) grant.  This $299,856 award, funded by the National Science Foundation, Inclusion Across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers in Engineering and Science (INCLUDES) program, is led by Georgia Institute of Technology, as a multi-institutional partnership. The focus of this project is to “impact the engineering faculty ecosystem by demonstrating a new method of support and engage diverse engineering faculty through retired and emeriti faculty who may have preceded them in their chosen field of study,” according to Dr. Comas Haynes of the Georgia Tech Research Institute.

This project also seeks to broaden participation in STEM through the acquisition of a greater understanding of direct communication (i.e. telephone calls, email, in-person meetings, etc.) versus the use of technology in the form of embodied conversational agents, and how they impact interactive experiences. These efforts provide an opportunity to open new possibilities for underrepresented minorities in the engineering and science fields.

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Morehouse College Awarded NSF Grant For Virtual Mentorship Research

Dr. Kinnis Gosha, an Assistant Professor and Director of the Culturally Relevant Computing Lab at Morehouse College, has been awarded a grant by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to conduct a study on virtual mentorship and how it impacts underrepresented minority students in the computer science and engineering fields. This grant award is for $299,882 and will span a two-year period.

The central purpose of this research is to develop and evaluate a virtual mentoring system that uses a group of embodied conversational agents (i.e., think avatars) to mentor underrepresented doctoral students, majoring in engineering and computer science and who are pursuing a career as a college professor.  This grant is also designed to provide guidance to minority students on the different paths available in the areas of engineering and computer science.

This grant is of great importance, as minority students are underrepresented in higher education in the United States, particularly in the areas of engineering and computer science.  Because of this, opportunities for mentorship in the engineering and computer science disciplines will be less scarce for interested students.  Research has shown that conversational agents used for mentoring have been effective in addressing this gap in support. The NSF award positions the Culturally Relevant Computing Lab to conduct research that can potentially transform the landscape of engineering and computer science, by providing the foundation and support needed to foster diversity through virtual mentorship.

 

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Culturally Relevant Computing Lab Member Ernest Holmes Awarded GCLA Scholarship

The Culturally Relevant Computing Lab at Morehouse College congratulates Ernest Holmes on receiving the Georgia CIO Leadership Association (GCLA) Scholarship. Every year, the GCLA awards an outstanding student that exhibits an interest in computer information systems or business, excels academically, and is active in community outreach. This year, this honor is awarded to Mr. Holmes.

Ernest is currently a junior Computer Science major at Morehouse College, and maintains a 3.68 GPA. He has been a member of the Culturally Relevant Computing Lab, led by Dr. Kinnis Gosha, since his freshman year, and has worked as an intern at the Google Headquarters in Mountain View, California the past two summers. He spends much of his free time participating in a number of community outreach activities that serve elementary, middle and high school students that have an interest in computer science.

The scholarship award will be presented during the GCLA CIO of the Year ORBIE Awards Ceremony, on November 15, 2017 at the Cobb Galleria Center in Atlanta, Georgia.  Over 1,000 people from various organizations across the state are expected to be in attendance.

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Four Members of Morehouse College’s CRC Lab Receive Travel Scholarships to Attend Tapia Conference

Members of Morehouse College’s Culturally Relevant Computing (CRC) Lab have received travel scholarships to attend the ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing Conference, which will place September 20th-September 23rd in Atlanta, GA.  Ernest Holmes, Kevin Womack, Nathan Harris, and Leron Julian were awarded the travel scholarships to attend the conference through support from the Institute for African- American Mentoring in Computing Sciences grant (NSF grant #1303156). Travel scholarships include conference registration, meals during the conference, and hotel accommodations.

The Tapia Conference brings together undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, researchers, and professionals in computing from all backgrounds and ethnicities to celebrate the diversity that exists in computing, connect with others with common backgrounds, ethnicities, disabilities, and gender so as to create communities that extend beyond the conference, and obtain advice from and make contacts with computing leaders in academia and industry.  The Tapia Conference has always been a premier venue to acknowledge, promote, and celebrate diversity in computing.

This is a great achievement for our lab members.  Tapia Conference scholarship applications are extremely competitive and are reviewed by over 90 professional volunteers in computer science industry and academia.  Congratulations to these students!

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Morehouse College Offers Android Programming Courses and Exposure to Coding Culture

Culturally Relevant Computing Lab Director, Dr. Kinnis Gosha, and Google software engineers, developed a course for Morehouse students to learn Android Application programming, along with the Applied Computer Science(CS) content, and received hands-on experience in a for-credit class.  The course, titled “Mobile App Development with Advanced Data Structures,”combined lecture, class discussion and in-class assignments targeted at learning Java, advanced data structures, ADS, and other basics for Android programming.  The Applied CS classes ran for 75 minutes and were held twice a week for 16 weeks in the fall semester of 2016. These classes, the first at the university for mobile app development, filled up quickly due to the buzz around the collaboration with Google, and 11 out of 12 students successfully completed the course.

Applied CS content enabled students to understand, apply and implement advanced data types using a mobile application platform that more than two billion devices run on today. The application development skills received provide something tangible that could be used after graduation to create software, products and even companies.  “A lot of these students get into computer science because they’re entrepreneurs and they need to understand the platform to generate revenue,” Dr. Gosha says.  “Learning coding in a platform-specific environment is a great way to prepare them both for CS or software engineering challenges, and exposes them to processes, and workflows they will encounter when using any platform or system for actually making their code run.”

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CRC Lab and APS Collaborate on Coding Summer Program

It is no secret the demand for people with information technology and computing skills is growing nationwide, and students are never too young to learn the necessary skills to help land you a career in that field.

Morehouse College and Atlanta Public Schools are doing their part to expose high school student to computing careers through a 4-week coding workshop.

The Xanadu-Computer Application Development/ X-CAPP Summer Program will be offered to rising 10th-12th grade students from June 5 through June 29.

“This program will provide a unique opportunity for students in the Atlanta metropolitan area to learn computer science even if these courses are not offered at their respective high schools,” said X-Capp co-founder and Morehouse College computer science professor Dr. Kinnis Gosha. “Having computer science training in high school increases the likelihood of retaining students who major in computer science at a significantly higher probability.”

During the camp, students will also be able to familiarize themselves with various computing careers through the ComputingCareersNow.org portal which was developed by Gosha in the Morehouse College Culturally Relevant Computing Lab.

“The ideal students for the X-Capp program are high achieving students who have shown and communicated a strong interest in computer science,” explains Atlanta Public Schools’ Gifted and Talented Education Coordinator, Dr. Quail T. Arnold. “This enrichment opportunity will help students explore a field of interest and further prepare them for college and/or career,”

For more information about X-Capp, please visit http://www.atlanta.k12.ga.us/Page/911 or contact the Xanadu Middle/High Program at 404-802-7585.

Read more: http://www.cbs46.com/story/35535818/morehouse-college-aps-partner-for-summer-computing-camp#ixzz4iVW1DDD2

See the original CBS46 News Story here.

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“X-Capp” Xanadu – Computer App Development Summer Program

X-Capp is a highly competitive and selective academic computing program that will be offered from June 5, 2017 through June 29, 2017 at Maynard Jackson High School and Morehouse College.
Students must be rising 10th – 12th graders with an interest in pursuing a degree in computer science after graduation.
Registration will take place on Friday, May 19 at the Campbell Building (21 Thirkeld Avenue SW, Atlanta) from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where:
Maynard Jackson High School
801 Glenwood Avenue
Atlanta, GA 30316
Morehouse College
830 Westview Drive SW,
Atlanta, GA 30314
Dates:
Monday, June 5, 2017 - Thursday, June 29, 2017
Time: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Cost: APS Students - $50.00
Non-APS Students - $100.00
Registration:
Friday, May 19, 2017 – 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
Campbell Building, 21 Thirkeld Avenue SW, Atlanta, GA 30315
What is the Xanadu – Computer App Development Program?
It is highly competitive and selective academic computing program that will be offered from June 5, 2017 through June 29, 2017. Students must be rising 10th – 12th graders with an interest in pursuing a degree in computer science after graduation. Students do not need to know how to write computer programs to participate. Preference will be given to applicants who attend an APS High School and have limited exposure to such a program. Seats are limited.

Who is eligible to participate in the Xanadu – Computer App Development Program?
All gifted and talented eligible/high achieving students in the metro Atlanta area who have successfully completed ninth grade and who also meet program criteria are eligible to participate. This program is highly competitive.

What are the criteria for acceptance into Xanadu – Computer App Development Program? This program is designed for gifted and high achieving students. Supporting documentation is required as outlined below and must be submitted at registration. Supporting documentation will not be returned. Please make all copies prior to submission.
I am an APS employee; my child does not attend APS. Can I enroll my child in Xanadu – Computer App Development Program?
Yes, children of APS employees are eligible to apply for acceptance into the program as long as they meet program criteria. Students of APS employees pay the Non-APS Student rate.
Can students of APS charter schools participate in the Xanadu – Computer App Development Program?
Yes, children of APS charter schools are eligible to apply for acceptance into the program as long as they meet program criteria. Charter students pay the non-APS student rate.
When will I receive notification verifying my child’s acceptance or non-acceptance into the program of application?
A letter of acceptance to the program will be emailed on Monday, May 22, 2017 by 5:00 pm.
What is the content of the program?
Students who participate in the course will receive a broad and rigorous introduction to computer science based on App Inventor, a mobile programming language for Android devices. The course is based on the College Board's emerging Advanced Placement (AP) Computer Science Principles curriculum framework for introductory computer science. Participating students will learn computer science by building socially useful mobile apps. In addition to programming and computer science principles, the course is project-based and emphasizes writing,
communication, collaboration, and creativity. Participants will not receive academic/course credit.
How are the instructional programs organized?
This course is based upon the units listed below:
Unit 1 - Getting Started: Preview & Setup
Unit 2 - Introduction to Mobile Apps & Pair Programming
Unit 3 - Creating Graphics & Images Bit by Bit
Unit 4 - Exploring Computing: Animation, Simulation, & Modeling
Unit 5 - Algorithms & Procedural Abstraction
Unit 6 - Using and Analyzing Data & Information
Unit 7 - Communication through the Internet
Is transportation provided to the Xanadu – Computer App Development Program?
No, APS bus transportation is not provided to Maynard H. Jackson High School.
What is the application and registration process for the Xanadu – Computer App Development Program?
1. Complete the online application which is available at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/XanaduAppDevelop. Completion of this application DOES NOT secure placement in the program.
2. Secure the program fee in the form of a money order or cashier’s check made payable to Atlanta Public Schools. Personal checks and cash will not be accepted. The submission of supporting documents and receipt of program fees secure consideration of placement in the program. We will refund 100% of all program fees if the applicant is not selected for X-Capp.
3. Registration takes place in person on Friday, May 19, 2017. Bring copies of supporting documentation, and the program fee to the Campbell Building 21 Thirkeld Ave. SW Atlanta, GA 30315.
*Receiving Schedule
Friday, May 19, 2017, 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Registration Begins
What forms of payment are accepted?
Money orders and cashier’s checks are the only acceptable forms of payment. No cash or personal checks will be accepted. Please bring payments made payable to Atlanta Public Schools with the student’s name written on the method of payment.
Is there a discount for families enrolling multiple children?
No, multi-student discounts are not available.
Are school meals provided Xanadu – Computer App Development Program?
The school meal program operates on-site during the program. Atlanta Public School students and its charter school students eat breakfast and lunch at no charge during the program regardless of meal status during the academic year. Non APS students will be required to pay for meals at a rate of $4 for each lunch and $1.50 for each breakfast. Students will not be permitted to charge meals. Parents will be contacted in the event a student requires a meal but funds are not provided. Students may bring their own lunch from home.
What is the policy regarding cancellation?
If cancellation is made on or before May 26, you will receive a full refund minus a $25.00 processing fee. No refunds will be made after this date. To cancel your registration, call 404-802-7585 and email a letter of cancellation to Xanadu_Gifted@atlanta.k12.ga.us. Include your child’s name, the program registered for, and reason for cancellation. Please allow 14 days for refund processing. If you have any additional questions, feel free to email the Office of Gifted and Talented Education at Xanadu_gifted@atlanta.k12.ga.us.

Program Requirements

Gifted Identified Students 
REQUIRED:
  • Student Recommendation Form completed by the school principal or gifted program teacher; Bring in a sealed envelope
  • Most recent transcript and progress report
  • Student Statement of Interest (300 word
    minimum)
  • “B” average (highly recommended)
Non-Gifted Identified Students
REQUIRED:
  • Student Recommendation Form completed by the school principal or general education teacher; Bring in a sealed envelope
  • Most recent transcript and progress report
  • Student Statement of Interest (300 word minimum)
  • “B” average (highly recommended)
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CRC Lab Presents at Regional Conference

Four members of the Culturally Relevant Computing Lab presented their research this weekend at the ACM Southeast Conference. The title of the poster presentation was titled “Introduction to Computer Science for Urban African American Students Using Sphero Robotics Workshop”. The four students consisted of Trey Ridley, Ernest Holmes, Kevin Womack and Jordan Scott from Morehouse College. An abstract from the submission is provided below:

This paper introduces the use of an all-day coding workshop as an intervention to introduce and expose African American high school students from a southeastern urban school district to coding and computing careers. The workshop is held at a local HBCU and led by African American undergraduates computer science majors who attend that HBCU. The workshop is focused on a robotic ball called an Sphero that allows users to control its motion and color by writing lines of code. Results from workshop showed an increase of interest in pursuing a career in computing after graduation compared to interest before the start of the workshop.