Non-Profit Youth Game Programming Initiative Receives $250K Google Grant

Non-profit youth program organiser World Wide Workshop today announced that it has received a $250,000 grant from Google.org, with which it hopes to expands its youth game programming network. World Wide Workshop builds apps that combine game mechanics and social networking to educate young people about computational skills and game production. The company has also launched a social learning network called Globaloria in Silicon Valley, which is currently funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Google's philantropic arm has now given the organization a quarter of a million dollar grant to support Globaloria, allowing World Wide Workshop to engage with more Silicon Valley companies and organizations. Dr. Idit Harel Caperton, president and founder of the World Wide Workshop, explained, "The goal of Globaloria in Silicon Valley is nothing less than community transformation." "Right here in Silicon Valley we have a situation where if we invest two or three years in these kids, they can become future inventors and the highly-qualified employees the tech, entertainment, education and game industries desperately need." The grant has also allowed the company to add the participation of Overfelt High School to the initiative. "With more than 60 percent of students qualifying as low-income, and 27 percent English language learners, a successful implementation at Overfelt will demonstrate the importance of building capacity by spreading Globaloria-type computational thinking and hands-on learning among many more young people, community leaders, educators, and parents," said Caperton.