Getting ready for a new school year can be a challenge for most parents, but while many think getting up at 7 a.m. to see your kids off to the bus is rough, it’s nothing compared to what this father does. Jose Luis Dominguez is determined to give his two kids — seven-year-old Luis and eight-year-old Kayla — the best possible chance at a good education, something he never had the opportunity to get. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘VN_PG_DCBP_ATF’); }); The three live in Mexico but through sheer determination Dominguez managed to get his two kids enrolled in a school in South Texas, just across the street from the restaurant he works at. Every morning and afternoon, the trio make the trek across the Hidalgo International Bridge, over the Rio Grande, to and from home. The 32-year-old says life is ugly across the border, with kids frequently being abducted by drug cartels. He feels a lot safer knowing his little ones are in school in the U.S. while he’s at work. Talk about going the extra mile for your kids. For Dominguez, a quality education away from drug violence is reason enough to wake up every morning and hike across an international border in the hopes it will get his children walking on a better path. Read more: http://www.viralnova.com/education-walk/
In an increasingly divisive U.S. political climate, there’s at least one cause that has found support on both sides of the aisle — computer science education. President Barack Obama, a Democrat, and Republican House Majority Leader Eric Cantor both stressed the importance of learning to to code, or write computer programs, in videos uploaded Sunday to YouTube by Code.org, a non-profit advocacy group. The joint call to action comes at the start of Computer Science Education Week, which began Monday. “If we want America to stay on the cutting edge, we need young Americans like you to master the tools and technology that will change how we do just about everything,” Obama says in a short video. “Don’t just buy a new video game, make one. Don’t just download the latest app, help design it. Don’t just play on your phone, program it.” Cantor, who often plays the role of political adversary to Obama, backed the President’s sentiment. “America is the land of opportunity. We have so much before us — so many challenges to overcome and problems to solve,” Cantor says. “Coding is the necessary tool of this century to best do that.” Cantor goes on to say that learning to code is as important as learning language and math: “It is the only way for you to prepare for the future.” Additionally, 2012 Republican presidential candidate and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich appears in a Code.org video promoting the Hour of Code campaign as “a great, free, voluntary opportunity” to “make sure that every American understands a lot more about computing.” In October, Code.org announced its “Hour of Code” campaign, which aimed to “demystify computer science” for 10 million grade school students by exposing them to introductory concepts for at least an hour during Computer Science Education Week. Hadi Partovi, co-founder and CEO of Code.org, told Mashable in an email that some 35,000 teachers and 5 million students from around the world signed up to participate. “Today is when 5 million students begin learning to code, with support from athletes, celebrities, politicians, world leaders and all the top websites of the world,” Partovi wrote. In addition to the political attention, Code.org has garnered support from celebrities and tech industry leaders. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Miami Heat player Chris Bosh, actor Ashton Kutcher and pop singers Shakira and Will.I.Am are among the prominent figures who have appeared in Code.org videos endorsing computer science education. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan explains the significance of Computer Science Education Week in another video uploaded to Code.org’s YouTube page on Sunday. The initiative is timed to correspond with the birthdate of computing pioneer Grace Murray Hopper (subject of Monday’s Google Doodle), who was born on Dec. 9, 1906, and died in 1992. Image: U.S. Navy Hopper earned a Ph.D. in Mathematics from Yale University and served in the U.S. Navy, helping to develop the earliest computers and design programming languages. After joining the Naval Reserves in […]
10 YouTube Videos Every College Student Needs to See 1. How to Do Laundry This YouTube tutorial will make you a wash-and-fold pro. Plus, the guys will enjoy learning from an attractive woman who hang-dries her thongs. 2. How to Have Safe Sex While this video doesn’t contain explicit — er — tutorials, it does explain the importance of protection and strong communication before and during your sexual encounters. Contact your campus’ student health counselor with more questions or for more info about safe sex. And be sure your parents are wearing their own raincoats, too. 3. The Freshman 15 A comical PSA warns college n00bs of the dreaded Freshman 15, to the tune of ’90s song “The Freshman,” by The Verve Pipe. 4. How to Tidy Up in Three Minutes Handy for when your parents drop by at 1 p.m. on a Sunday — and you’re still asleep. Bonus: Speaking from experience, this is a valuable skill to have even post-grad. 5. How to Do a Keg Stand Precise form, proper leverage, cheap beer: all the ingredients for a killer keg stand — not that you’ll be drinking in college, right? Be sure to memorize how to play beer pong, too. Game variations per fraternity not included. 6. How to Live on a Budget Budgets sound pretty bust, but they’re actually quite simple and incredibly effective. If you do it right, you won’t have to take that after-school job at Pinkberry (although, that is where you’ll meet all the hot chicks, #justsayin). 7. How to Organize Your Dorm Room YouTube user nikkithebrat creates helpful organization and design tutorials for the college generation. Guys, just replace everything pink with another color — unless, of course, that’s your bag. 8. 10 Dorm Comfort Items She may look like your mom, but Cindy Kunz is down. She suggests bringing things to college like an electric teapot, which let’s face it, is pretty clutch. 9. Shit Sorority Girls Say The “Shit People Say” movement may be dead, but that doesn’t mean we can’t learn a thing or two from the videos. For instance, according to sorority girls, “Fro-yo doesn’t have any calories.” Stereotypes aside, this video and its brother production, “Shit Frat Guys Say,” can be pretty accurate. 10. How to Fold a Fitted Sheet Learning how to fold a fitted sheet may not seem like a priority, but in truth, nothing is sexier than a tidy stack of linens. BONUS: Sweatpants Let’s get something straight: Sweats are rad. You will wear them every single day at college, whether in hoodie, pant or headband form. That being said, there is a time and a place for all things fleece. Lecture hall? Meh, probably. Late night munchies run? Duh. Date night? Fool, get real. Read more: http://mashable.com/2012/08/17/youtube-videos-college/
Got a question for Karnjanaprakorn? Use the chat feature above to get it answered live! Karnjanaprakorn is the CEO and co-founder of Skillshare, a community marketplace for classes. Skillshare is a community of teachers and students driven by a passion to share real-word skills through collaborative learning. Previously, Karnjanaprakorn led the product team at HotPotato, which was acquired by Facebook, and developed products and services that organized the creative world at Behance. He is also a venture advisor for Collaborative Fund, a 2012 TED Fellow and was listed as one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business in 2012 by Fast Company. Karnjanaprakorn is a graduate of the University of Virginia and VCU Brandcenter. He currently lives in the East Village, New York City. #StartupLab is a free virtual mentorship program created by The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of over 500 of America’s most successful young entrepreneurs who have, collectively, generated tens of thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue. #StartupLab offers millions of entrepreneurs, small business owners and startup founders the tactical advice they need to launch and grow new businesses via live, interactive video chats, educational content and mentorship opportunities — right on Facebook. Scott Gerber Scott Gerber is a serial entrepreneur, author (Never Get a ‘Real’ Job), TV commentator and founder of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneur…More Read more: http://mashable.com/2012/09/13/live-chat-skillshare/
