Coordinators: David Laverell, Fred Ferwerda and Keith Vander Linden

Course Objectives: Though it may seem surprising in today's digital culture, not everyone has adequate access to information and communication technology (ICT) or the knowledge and skills required to use it. This practicum will engage students in the task of bridging this digital divide through Project Connect, a technical outreach service project run by the Department of Computer Science. During the course of this practicum, students will engage with a culture significantly different from their own in order to:

• Understand the nature of the digital divide and what effect it has on underprivileged groups
• Be able to articulate how they can help bridge the digital divide and what they might do in the future in this regard.
• Develop a limited but personal relationship with some members of an underprivileged group
• Gain a better understanding of themselves and their own culture

Students will be oriented to the digital divide issue shortly after the end of Spring semester, assist in teaching technical literacy classes to various under-privileged groups in the Grand Rapids area primarily during the summer, and continue to support those groups throughout the summer and fall semesters. Students must register in the spring for the fall semester session of the course and will receive Cross-Cultural Engagement core credit for this course.