We are seeing many indications these days that administrators are realizing that a strong computer science curriculum for students is a critical aspect of providing high quality education. Now it seems that school district are beginning to use this message to attract parents as well.
The Crowley Independent School District in Texas is a great example of this new thinking. As CSTA member Lynne Ryan explained, a new toll road called the Chism Trail is about to be opened that will connect downtown Fort Worth with communities south. More than half of this new tool road will be in Crowley ISD. When the new road is opened, the community expects to see tremendous growth due to development. In expectation of these changes, Crowley ISD has launched a new marketing campaign to highlight the excellence of its school system.
The campaign consists of a series of five short videos that were created to “sell” the strengths of the district. The video topics include:

The Developing 21st Century Learners video focuses on student access to new technologies to promote and expand learning and Lynne herself talks about the importance of tools for collaborative learning and exploration.
The world is changing and parents have a lot more flexibility and power when it comes to school choice within many public school systems. The Crowley ISD videos demonstrate the importance of strong computing programs as an indicator of a forward-thinking learning environment.
Chris Stephenson
CSTA Executive Director