Center for Science and Technology in Education
2018 Spring Lecture Series
Lunch & Discussion with Bianca Bennett
Wednesday May 16, 2018
11:30 - 1:00pm Main Event & Lunch (Benjamin Bldg, Room 2226)
Specialist, Computer Science
District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS)
Students and faculty are invited for a conversation and lunch about computer science education/computational thinking in the DC schools. RSVP required at ylizarde@umd.edu.
Equity in education has been a passion for Bianca Bennett since her earliest teaching experiences. Bianca’s career in education began at Georgia State University in 2004. She participated in an accelerated teacher certification and master of education program, focused on training teachers to be advocates for equity in Atlanta’s urban schools. Bianca continued to grow academically in her career by obtaining endorsements to teach English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and gifted students.
As a teacher, Bianca had the opportunity to teach students from diverse backgrounds and serve as a leader in her schools. Wanting to have a greater impact, Bianca stepped away from the classroom in 2013. She was accepted into National Urban Fellows, a public service leadership development program, obtaining her Master of Public Administration. At the conclusion of the program in 2014, Bianca returned to Atlanta Public Schools as a district wide gifted specialist with a renewed sense of ensuring equity within the school system’s gifted program. Additionally, she worked with the district’s STEM schools to develop a differentiated gifted, STEM environment within each school.
In February of this year, Bianca’s passion for integrative STEM education in urban schools brought her to District of Columbia Public Schools as a Computer Science Specialist. In her current role, she is responsible for developing a comprehensive K-12 computer science program. Of course, as she builds the program, she will continue her commitment to ensuring equitable access for D.C.’s diverse student population.
Note: Dr. Bennett will stay until 3pm for conversations about partnerships around computer science education and/or computational thinking. Anyone interested in joining these talks, email Diane Jass Ketelhut at djk@umd.edu.
CONTACT: Natalie Ylizarde ylizarde@umd.edu