uring the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Computer Science for All Summit in June 2021, the summit identified software development as one of the fastest growing sectors in Pennsylvania’s economy, stating there are “18,000+ unfilled computer science jobs with an average salary of $80,000 and a projected growth of up to 26 percent annually.” As part of the 2021 Strategic Plan recently adopted, Lycoming College plans to add computer science as an academic major to strengthen opportunities for existing students and cultivate recruitment efforts. Many of the College’s peer and aspirant institutions offer computer or data science majors and leverage these majors to recruit excellent students. For a number of years, Lycoming has offered a minor in computer science with a focus on the interdisciplinary aspects of computers and technology. “Bolstering our curriculum to provide an applied computer science major will enhance STEM opportunities at Lycoming,” says Phil Sprunger, Ph.D., provost and dean. “The collection, analysis, and use of ‘big data’ has become a significant component of many fields, and developing a computer science major for Lycoming will allow students from many different majors to differentiate themselves with coding, data, and development expertise in a growing field.” A student majoring in computer science should be creative, possess problem-solving and critical thinking skills, and have the ability to think computationally in an interdisciplinary environment. Expertise in computer science opens a wide range of opportunities for students, even if their primary choice of employment is in another field. Bearing this in mind, the department of mathematical sciences has constructed a comprehensive and manageable degree plan. The objective of this major curriculum is to offer a streamlined and compact sequence of coursework that students can complete without compromising on their depth of topical knowledge. The proposed program will result in a bachelor of arts degree that balances theory with practice and may be specialized or generalized without compromising on the fundamentals of computer science. “Our proposed major in applied computer science is concentrated enough to prepare the student for a career in computer science, yet it is manageable enough for a double major to help students boost their career choice and be prepared for the greatest opportunities post-graduation,” says Krish Pillai, Ph.D., assistant professor of computer science. With a degree in applied computer science, the student is engaged holistically for the sum of their knowledge as a problem solver across several related domains — from the arts to philosophy or economics — rather than narrowly as a computer scientist. This approach aligns with the College’s vision as a center of excellence in the liberal arts and sciences. When explaining why a computer science major would be attractive to prospective students and their families, Pillai shares, “Computer science is a very creative, satisfying field. Our students are not going to be irrelevant any time soon because computers are everywhere, and we are dependent on them. We need people to develop this software. Graduates in the field are in demand, and there’s not any other job out there that can compare when it comes to high salaries with an entry-level degree.” Lycoming anticipates accepting students into the new major during the fall of 2022. Currently, the College has six students pursuing computer science as a minor, with plans to convert to a major. Once fully operational, the program expects to grow the number of majors to 10 per academic year. “I first became interested in computer science during my sophomore year when I took a required course for a mathematics major. We were assigned a project in which we were to create an animal using code, so I created a giraffe. While it was a very rudimentary image, I realized that I could use code in whatever way I wanted to achieve my end goal,” shares Kaitlyn Haefner ’24. “I decided to continue my education in computer science and am currently taking two courses with Dr. Pillai. He has spurred my interest even more because he is so passionate about what he teaches and applies what we learn to problems outside the classroom.” Haefner was recently selected to complete an internship at Discovery Machine Inc., an artificial intelligence company headquartered in Williamsport. Coding is like a super power; you can create anything from nothing.” – Krish Pillai, Ph.D. Code Success: A for d 14 LYCOMING COLLEGE 2022 SPRING MAGAZINE
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