This project sought computing community input for the purpose of planning the design of an institute to advance undergraduate computing education in the United States, to address the needs of 21st century technology, which relies heavily on parallel computation (where multiple processors work in coordination) and distribution (where computational and data resources are geographically distant from each other and are coordinated across the Internet). Current instruction relegates parallel and distributed computing (PDC) to advanced or niche coverage, leaving most graduates unprepared for the different kind of computational thinking and problem solving associated with PDC, which modern careers depend upon. A PDC-knowledgeable workforce is essential for the United States to remain competitive in the global information technology arena, and also to be able to defend against cyber threats. Three meetings were held to gather input from stakeholders, including academia, industry, government, accrediting bodies, and professional societies, with 117 total participants, who generated over 300 pages of notes, via a carefully designed small group inquiry process. The results were collated, and presented to 31 participants in a fourth meeting, as lists of initially identified goals, strategies, and activities for the institute, with the purpose of gathering additional input on the design of the institute. The resulting 122 pages of notes from that meeting address those three aspects of the institute's design for twelve identified stakeholder groups: students, faculty, academic administrators, textbook authors, publishers, industry, professional societies, accreditation bodies, government labs, federal funding agencies, related PDC and computing education projects, and international education agencies. Due to the COVID pandemic, the meeting schedule was delayed, so that delivery of the institute plan had to be deferred until after the original end date for the grant. Two of the collaborating institutions received no-cost extensions that will enable the input from the fourth meeting to be condensed into a report for presentation to the National Science Foundation at a meeting planned for the fall of 2021. This institution will participate in that meeting using participant support funds that remain available from the lead collaborator. 

Last Modified: 07/08/2021
Modified by: Charles C Weems