Casa Azul Productions’ Apprenticeship Program
According to the United States Department of Education, Hispanics
“occupy only 2% of the STEM workforce in the United States. Additionally, only 10% of
college and university degrees awarded in the STEM field are given to Hispanics.”
Casa Azul Productions started with a pilot called Casa Azul Productions’ Apprenticeship Program, a program funded by the US State Department Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs through an Alumni TIES grant in 2020.
Course Content Samples:
In 2020, Casa Azul Productions was created by Bianca Alvarado, along with her brother Eric
Alvarado, with input from other Exchange Alumni team members (Freddy Espinosa and Jo
Nelson) through a program funded by the US State Department Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs to increase the number of Hispanic students who receive training and knowledge on careers related to technology, specifically in digital media content creation, such as website development, illustration, and UX design.
This project was awarded the Alumni TIES grant which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and administered by World Learning. The pilot program was transition into an online program when many challenges arise like the lack of functioning computers centers in local communities.
As we launched the course online, it was possible to have national and international reach, the total registration of 515 students on our platform with primarily
users coming from the United States, Mexico, and Latin America. Since our initial goal was to impact Hispanic students, we chose to develop the courses in English and Spanish on:
1) Website Design in Spanish and English
2) Introduction to Illustration in Spanish and English along with other supplemental materials such as likes ebooks on UX Design.
Program Outcomes
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Courses
Progress Tracker
Website Development Course
Our first course was on Website Development using WordPress in English and Spanish.
In the Spanish course we had 74 registered users and our data showed us that: 33 students completed the level I part of the course. Of these 33 students, 72.7% identified themselves as university students, 48.3% identified themselves as a person who receives some type of government assistance program. Another 69.7% identified themselves as women and 45.5% said that this was the first technology course they were taking.
In this English version of the website development course using WordPress, we had 91 registered users, of which 24 students have completed the level I part of the course. Of this number, 37.5% identified themselves as university students, 25% as high school students, 12.5 % as middle school students, 4.2% as elementary students, and 20.8% as not going to school but currently working. Another important fact is that almost 75% identified themselves as a person who receives some kind of government aid or who is experiencing financial difficulties. Also, 50% identified themselves as women and 33.3% stated that the course was the first technology course they were taking. And 91.7% said they are likely to take another website course.
In the Spanish course we had 74 registered users and our data showed us that: 33 students completed the level I part of the course. Of these 33 students, 72.7% identified themselves as university students, 48.3% identified themselves as a person who receives some type of government assistance program. Another 69.7% identified themselves as women and 45.5% said that this was the first technology course they were taking.
In this English version of the website development course using WordPress, we had 91 registered users, of which 24 students have completed the level I part of the course. Of this number, 37.5% identified themselves as university students, 25% as high school students, 12.5 % as middle school students, 4.2% as elementary students, and 20.8% as not going to school but currently working. Another important fact is that almost 75% identified themselves as a person who receives some kind of government aid or who is experiencing financial difficulties. Also, 50% identified themselves as women and 33.3% stated that the course was the first technology course they were taking. And 91.7% said they are likely to take another website course.
- Website Design Course
- High School & College Student
- STEM Course
Illustration Course in Spanish
The second course that we launched was the Illustration Courses in Spanish and
English. These courses were launched around November 2020, but some editions were
completed until January 2021. The English Illustration Course was fully recently published in
March, 2021. This course was not promoted until recently in March and April 2021.
The statistics for students enrolled in the Spanish version are as follows. This course had 162 learners, of which 57 students have completed the full course according to the exit google forms in our system. Of these, of which 66.7% identify themselves as university students, 52.8% identify themselves as the person receiving some type of government assistance program or experiencing financial difficulties, 93% identified themselves as women and 47.4% said that this was the first technology course they were taking.
And 100% said they would like to continue learning with another advanced illustration course. These data inform us that we have done a good job in presenting to our students with that there is the possibility of developing a career in Illustration.
The statistics for students enrolled in the Spanish version are as follows. This course had 162 learners, of which 57 students have completed the full course according to the exit google forms in our system. Of these, of which 66.7% identify themselves as university students, 52.8% identify themselves as the person receiving some type of government assistance program or experiencing financial difficulties, 93% identified themselves as women and 47.4% said that this was the first technology course they were taking.
And 100% said they would like to continue learning with another advanced illustration course. These data inform us that we have done a good job in presenting to our students with that there is the possibility of developing a career in Illustration.
- Illustration Course
- Digital Design Course
- Led by Women STEM Instructor
This project also helped evolve Casa Azul Productions which is currently led by Bianca Alvarado and is a social impact consulting firm where she has started to collaborate and offer guidance for other educational groups and organizations that want to create their programs online through EduTech consulting.
Collaborate With Us
Thank you for your interest in Casa Azul. We'd love to connect with you and explore ways to help you create interactive learning experiences.
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