Actua Receives $10 Million in Government of Canada CanCode Program Funding
Ottawa, ON – January 22, 2018
Today the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development announced that Actua will receive $10 million in funding from the Government of Canada’s new CanCode program.
“Coding is the next big job. Industries ranging from automotive and agri-food to the life sciences and clean technology need coders, given their increasingly digital nature. That’s why our government is equipping Canadian youth with the digital skills they need for the jobs of the future. By teaching kids to code today, we’re positioning Canada for future success across all industries and sectors,” said the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.
The CanCode program is a historic investment by the Government of Canada of $50 million over two years that will support increased access to opportunities for coding and digital skills building for youth in grades K-12. Actua’s funding will be used to increase program delivery across Canada by its 35 network member programs located at universities and colleges across Canada, and its Outreach Team which delivers across the North. It will also support research, teacher training (providing teachers training in coding and digital skills as well as resources they can use in the classroom), and Maker Mobile Workshops.
Over the two-year period, Actua will engage a total of 500,000 youth across every province and territory.
“We are honoured to be a recipient of CanCode funding and thrilled to provide additional support to our network members to engage more youth in building digital skills,” said Jennifer Flanagan, President and CEO of Actua. “This support means that hundreds of thousands more youth, including 35,000 Indigenous youth, will have the opportunity to access free, deep-impact, face-to-face learning experiences which are critical to their future success and our future Canadian workforce.”
Actua’s CanCode funding will be matched by several of its corporate supporters including Google Canada and Microsoft.
“We’re thrilled to see an investment in programs that will nurture the next generation of Canada’s technology builders. That’s why we support Actua through our Codemakers program, which has helped hundreds of thousands of young Canadians learn about the technology that is shaping our world. We need more students pursuing an education in Computer Science, particularly those who have historically been underrepresented in the field, and today’s announcement will help make that a reality. Computer Science is not the language of ones and zeros. It’s the language of creativity, entrepreneurship and potential,” said Sabrina Geremia, Country Director at Google.
About Actua:
Actua is Canada’s leading science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) youth outreach network representing 35 university and college-based members. Each year 250,000 young Canadians in over 500 communities nationwide are inspired through hands-on educational workshops, camps and community outreach initiatives. Actua focuses on the engagement of underrepresented youth through specialized programs for Indigenous youth, girls and young women, at-risk youth and youth living in Northern and remote communities. Actua’s major funders include: Government of Canada, Google Canada, Suncor Energy Foundation, GE Canada, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Ontario Trillium Foundation, Finning, Toyota Canada Foundation and Lockheed Martin. For more information about Actua, visit actua.ca.
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Contact Information:
Kristina Martin, Director of Communications, Actua
111 Murray Street, Ottawa ON K1N 5M5
Office: (613) 234-4137
Email: kristina.martin@actua.ca
Web: www.actua.ca