In 2022, the Kentucky General Assembly established we lead computer science and Virtual Computer Science Career Academy, where students can get an early start training for careers in the tech industry.

It is the first program of its kind in the US.

It's a first of its kind in the nation Virtual Computer Science Career Academy that operates on a statewide basis and we are educating Kentucky high school students and eighth grade students, preparing them for high wage, high demand jobs in the tech sector.

So programing software development, data science, cybersecurity, everything for students is free.

We do have a MOOC with the districts, and it's $500 per year per student.

But we do have some students that are actually taking advantage of the program and doing both pathways, and so they're taking classes both in the network security and in the computer programing.

All the classes that we offer in those two pathways when you take dual credit, ends up counting in the technical core for any of the associate of CRT degrees at the KCTCS colleges.

The secret sauce for us and what the basis is we leverage, as is daily live virtual instruction with our teachers.

And so students have someone to interact with on a daily basis and learn from on a daily basis, someone monitoring their progress available to them to tutor them, then they can succeed in a virtual environment.

I've always liked computers.

I find them interesting.

I love to I would love to tinker some of them some time.

But you know, that's an expensive hobby to get into on time.

But yeah, I took the course for for it more for personal interest and hopefully go on to some sort.

Of course I'm not course I'm job with computers in the future but my teachers teaching me now I feel ready you know I feel like I can go into a college course and maybe know a few things and it's really helpful.

Last year there were about 3400 jobs a month advertised on Monster.

Indeed in the tech sector at any given time.

And those were across all regions of the state and the average salary was just upwards of $74,000 a year for those jobs.

So the job opportunities are there.

The challenge that employers have is filling those jobs and finding qualified talent to fill them.

And because so many of those jobs, every mode and they can be done anywhere from Louisiana to Paducah and all points in between.

Kentuckians are also competing with people outside of Kentucky for those jobs because a lot of them don't require people to move from wherever they are.

It's a real game changer.

It opens your life to a lot of opportunities that are the earlier you take the course, you know, the programing industry is only getting bigger and bigger as the year goes on.

So if you take the course early now, there's a chance you have a job you really love in the future.

We lead.

Computer Science is set to announce plans for the 2025 26 school year at the Capitol next week.