In new partnership, U of I doctoral students will provide supervised instruction of NIC computer science courses

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — Doctoral students from University of Idaho Coeur d’Alene will now be able to give supervised instruction to North Idaho College students in associate-level computer science courses offered at the NIC campus.

U of I and NIC are partnering under the new “North Idaho Fellowship for Excellence in Computer Science and Robotics Engineering,” and U of I Coeur d’Alene Center Executive Officer Andrew Fields said the agreement benefits all students involved.

“This partnership is a win-win because not only do our doctoral students get valuable supervised teaching experience, but NIC students get access to computer science instructors that are otherwise unavailable in today’s local market,” Fields said.

Fellows will be selected and supervised by U of I computer science faculty, and NIC and U of I will collaborate on curriculum and instructional delivery for the courses. The partnership is set to begin in the Fall 2024 semester and continue for four years.

All courses offered through the fellowship are associate-degree level courses that NIC currently offers; however, faculty shortages have stalled enrollment in computer science courses, which include computer organization and assembly language, programming language, computer operating systems and system software.

U of I’s Dean of Engineering Suzanna Long said bringing undergraduate and graduate students together can forge an important and impactful connection.

“Supervised teaching experiences will provide these fellows with amazing opportunities to share their passion for computer science with a rising audience of undergraduate students and may help the fellows find their career path,” Long said.

The fellowship agreement will strengthen and streamline pathways for local computer science students by enabling them to pursue each academic degree level — from an associate to a doctorate — at the NIC campus in downtown Coeur d’Alene.

The Hedlund Building on NIC’s campus is home to both NIC’s computer science program and U of I Coeur d’Alene’s computer science program, which is a program within the university’s College of Engineering. U of I’s Center for Intelligent Industrial Robotics is also based out of the Vandal computer science program housed in the Hedlund Building on NIC’s campus.

“This partnership is important for U of I and NIC to help meet the needs of a rapidly growing industry in a rapidly growing state,” Fields said. “It’s a good investment for both higher education and the industry throughout Idaho and the nation, and the benefits to computer science students in Coeur d’Alene cannot be overstated.”

For more information, contact U of I Coeur d’Alene at 208-667-2588 or cdactr@uidaho.edu.

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Media Contact

Megan Snodgrass
Marketing & Communications Manager
U of I Coeur d'Alene
208-561-1550
meganps@uidaho.edu