February 28, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 28, 2019

Google’s Education “Evangelist” tells University of Alaska leaders the model for future student success will be information driven

ANCHORAGE – Jaime Casap, Google’s education evangelist, spent the day at the University of Alaska Wednesday talking with university leaders about technology, innovation and new models that will ensure student success for college students.

Casap, who focuses his time for Google on the intersection of technology, innovation and education, told UA leaders that it’s important students understand how technology works and how it can be applied to build the new economy. “…Computers, technology, machine learning, artificial intelligence, all those things are gonna be, they're just going to expedite and grow in our economy, and the kids learning these skills now is going to be critical for their success for the future,” he said.

Casap visited with a class of middle school students taking part in the university’s Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program [ANSEP] middle college. About 50 students from northwest Alaska worked with Casap on building computers.

“Some of these kids aren't going to end up in technology, maybe most of them aren't, but understanding how these things work is going to be important in this new economy that we're building.” Casap said. 

He said universities need to change their models to better engage students in this type of learning.

“It's less about coming to the university to fit into the university's model, and much more for universities and colleges and other learning systems, teaching systems, to make themselves available and to reach out to students and to support them, how they need it, when they need it, and at what price and what they need,” said UA President Jim Johnsen. “And so, it's a much more interesting approach, and frankly, very interestingly, it's totally consistent with a model that we are envisioning here at the University of Alaska, the UA 2040 website displays this model, where we put the student first; the student in the middle of every single thing we do.”

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 Accompanying video and sound bites available at https://vimeo.com/320392079/150a7b8a82

Interviews:
00:00 - 00:36: Jaime Casap, Chief Education Evangelist, Google, speaking to UA leaders

Jim Johnsen, President, University of Alaska
00:39 ...it's less about coming to the university to fit into the university's model, and much more for universities and colleges and other learning systems, teaching systems, to make themselves available and to reach out to students and to support them, how they need it, when they need it, and at what price and what they need.

01:01 And so, it's a much more interesting approach, and frankly, very interestingly, it's totally consistent with a model that we are envisioning here at the University of Alaska, the UA 2040 website displays this model, where we put the student first; the student in the middle of every single thing we do. 01:19

01:20 - 02:32 ANSEP middle school students building computers. Jaime Casap interacts with the students to learn and understand the project they're working on. 

Jaime Casap 
02:33 learning these tools, learning how to use these across the board, doesn't matter. Some of these kids aren't going to end up in technology, maybe most of them aren't, but understanding how these things work is going to be important in this new economy that we're building 02:46 in terms of visualization so computers, technology, machine learning, artificial intelligence, AR, VR, all those things are gonna be, they're just going to expedite and grow in our economy and the kids learning these skills now is going to be critical for their success for the future. 03:02