Coursera has announced a partnership with Howard University (HU) to build a job-relevant course catalog.
The online open course provider that launched in 2012 made a commitment last year to better address systemic racism through learning tactics. Coursera partners with more than 200 universities and companies to offer courses on its platform spanning an array of topics.
This new partnership with HU will allow the prominent HBCU to build a catalog of courses taught by its faculty to equip students of color with the education they need as they enter the job market. The first round of courses in the catalog slated to launch later this year will focus on information systems for business and linear algebra for data science specializations.
Through this new partnership, HU president Dr. Wayne A.I. Frederick is joining Coursera’s university advisors board.
“Historically, there has been a disconnect between companies and top-level talent from underrepresented communities who don’t have the same access and resources as other job seekers,” Frederick said in a Coursera blog post. “This initiative is good for job seekers, good for business, and good for the country.”
Coursera has also recently announced a new portfolio of social justice-focused courses offered by other universities including some focused on diversity and inclusion for HR professionals, inclusive leadership, community awareness and more. The company plans to release more than 40 courses focused on bias, systemic racism, effective allyship, and diversity in the workplace in the next few months, a press release states.
“We are honored to work with our partners to increase access for Black learners, including connecting people around the world with leading experts at Howard University,” said Coursera Chief Content Officer Betty Vandenbosch in a statement. “Together, we can empower millions of learners with content that can truly transform their minds, their lives, and the world.”
To better support Black learners, Coursera is partnering with Facebook Elevate and nonprofit partners to offer up to 10,000 scholarships for its Facebook Social Media Marketing Professional Certificate program. The company is also partnering with Black Girls CODE to provide free access to its courses to up to 2,000 girls.
Check out this Q&A AfroTech published with Coursera’s associate director of university partnerships, Shantelle Williams-Valadié. Also, check out the Coursera’s Black History Month collection, which shares courses exclusively taught by Black instructors.
