Outline for ken mcneely final

PROPOSAL: Building the Digital Skill-­‐Set

About the Digital Pathways Initiative: The Digital Pathways Initiative seeks to transform the economic landscape for the next generation of digital leaders by connecting underrepresented groups with educational, experiential and job opportunities in the technology and media sectors. Today we are presenting a pilot program that can become a self-­‐sustaining, on-­‐going program for AT&T KEY OBJECTIVES: • • • •

Instruction & certification: Build 21st century skill set for young people in underserved communities. Integrate with assessment mechanisms that will certify competence in key skill areas for future employers.

Experiential Learning: Create opportunities for engagement with industry experts and for simulating real-­‐life challenges in a compelling context Career Discovery: Build a network of mentors and presenters who can help define and showcase the career opportunities that are available in the evolving tech/media/telecommunications sector.

Community Connection: Through student experiences and programming, develop a community of industry practitioners & stakeholders who will teach, coach, mentor, and help to place the students who participate in the program.

WHY AT&T AT&T is the foremost company at the intersection of three critical, converging industries: media & entertainment, telecommunications & mobile, and technology. The company has mastered a number of key disciplines essential for future careers, including leadership, customer service, and innovation. And with its size, corporate assets and industry relationships, AT&T can serve as a foundational partner in this initiative.

TARGET PROGRAM: DIGITAL SKILLS DEVELOPMENT Overview: A digital technology program that focuses on the application of evolving digital technologies within a creative environment. A STEM program at an entertainment company.

Phase 1: Exposure/Research (6-­‐8 weeks) • • • • •

Students will create a blog that focuses on emergent digital technologies, new practices within the entertainment industry, and new applications of existing technologies.

A minimum of 3 posts/week. Word requirement TBD. Sponsorship to attend one industry conference during this phase.

Project: a paper to be presented to a panel of industry experts (think orals in a graduate program).

This is the only place where we could fit in high school students, if we wanted to.

Phase 2: Education/Training (8-­‐12 weeks) • •

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This is a classroom setting (at the AT&T campus in El Segundo) where the students learn about digital technology in the real world Tech topics to be covered: AR/VR, drone tech/applications, OTT, 5G, 4K/8K/UHD, etc. (here is where the tech experts need to step in and tell us what we need to include. Also this needs to be an evolving section to correspond to industry changes; what’s included one year might not be the next) Auxiliary topics to be covered: legal/regulatory environment both federal and state (e.g. state privacy laws may effect what you can do with drones), marketing, content evaluation, B2B, etc. (this section may not be as fluid as

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the previous one but I see more trial & error here as we figure out what is the best curriculum; what we think is important in the beginning may turn out not to be as we move forward) Project: outline for Phase 3 which is actual production of content. Students will need to choose an area of focus for Phase 3 based on learnings and interest

Phase 3: Production of Content (8-­‐12 weeks) • • •

This is where the students go into the various labs/experiential centers to actually produce something of portfolio quality.

This should be a one-­‐on-­‐one mentorship type learning environment where the students have someone to guide them through their project.

If the previous phases have been done correctly, the mentor will have to do little to no teaching and more project management for the student.

WHERE AT&T CAN HELP: This is an opportunity to merge the expertise and experience of Northern California tech and Southern California entertainment. As AT&T solidifies its position as a leader in the entertainment space, not just through content and entertainment choices but also with cutting edge technology, a robust workforce will be needed to stay ahead of the curve and continually satisfy consumer desires. Developing a workforce pipeline is a natural next step for a company that plans to lead the industry.

As a leader in emerging and ever-­‐changing technology and its applications, the current AT&T workforce is uniquely qualified to train the next generation of talent needed in this space. While other companies (Intel, Cisco, Apple, etc.) have workforce development initiatives in place, only AT&T has the infrastructure (through state presidents and other stakeholders) to take the program nationwide and develop talent wherever it may be.

DESIRED OUTCOMES (for discussion) Instructional hours: we will deliver [ ] instructional hours to students in each phase. This will be augmented by visits to companies, and presentations from industry practitioners.

Social media reach: content created will be promoted online. We will measure the reach via impressions, likes, shares, and other standard metrics.

Content creation: Each cohort will develop [ ] content during each phase, which will be added to a library that we will make available digitally. Some of that content will feature interviews with dynamic business leaders, highlights from conferences, hack-­‐a-­‐thons, and case competitions, and other activities that will provide critical access for the wider community.

Placement: Members of the cohort will have mentors who will work to move participants ‘up the funnel’; e.g., from community college to four year college or internship, from four year college to internship or full-­‐time employment, etc.