Overview
- The CEOs of Microsoft, Uber, Etsy, and over 250 other companies signed an open letter advocating for computer science and AI as high school graduation requirements.
- The letter highlights that fewer than 6% of U.S. high schoolers take any computer science courses, and only 12 states currently mandate them.
- A Brookings Institution study cited in the letter found that a single high school computer science course leads to an 8% wage increase, regardless of career path.
- Countries like China, South Korea, and Singapore already mandate computer science or AI education, raising concerns about the U.S. falling behind globally.
- The initiative builds on an April 23 White House executive order prioritizing teacher training and federal grants for K-12 computer science and AI education.