PrepareCS

PrepareCS

Many states are adopting and implementing K-12 CS education policies and initiatives. The PrepareCS program advances computer science education by establishing a community of practice of key stakeholders, including education faculty, computer science faculty and K-12 teachers, nonprofits, and state education agencies. PrepareCS aims toraise awareness and build capacity for computer science (CS) in preservice education by strengthening faculty knowledge and preservice teacher readiness. New teacher candidates will need to understand computer science, including state standards and licensure options, as they graduate and begin work in K-12 schools. The PrepareCS program supports Schools of Education and state CS education leaders in collaborating to add CS to teacher education programs.

PrepareCS is a collaboration between the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (Jennifer Rosato), Georgia State University (Dr. Janet Liao) and University of Nebraska-Omaha (Dr. Michelle Friend). Please contact us at [email protected] with any questions. 

PrepareCS is made possible with support from Google.
 

Members
Map of United States with states of PrepareCS teams shaded.
  • California - California State University, Dominguez Hills
  • Illinois - University of Illinois Urbana Champaign
  • Iowa - University of Northern Iowa
  • Kansas - Kansas State University
  • Louisiana - Southeastern Louisiana University
  • Maine - University of Maine
  • Maryland - Loyola University Maryland
  • Maryland - University of Maryland Baltimore County
  • Massachusetts - Bridgewater State University
  • Michigan - Aquinas College
  • Minnesota - University of Minnesota (Twin Cities & Morris campuses)
  • New Mexico - New Mexico State University
  • New York - University at Albany SUNY
  • North Carolina - Appalachian State University
  • North Carolina - East Carolina University
  • South Carolina - Coastal Carolina University
  • South Carolina - The Citadel
  • Tennessee - University of Tennessee Knoxville
  • Wisconsin - Marquette University
Activities

PrepareCS has hosts an annual in-person workshop where teams gather to work on their visions and strategic plans as well as share successes and challenges with each other. During the academic year, quarterly virtual webinars allow teams to stay connected, hear about resources and initiatives from other organizations, and provide some common planning time. During the May meeting, teams report on their progress during the past year.

2025-26 Topics:

  • Fall - AI and Data Science in Teacher Prep
  • Winter - Inclusion and Accessibility Frameworks for CS
  • Spring - Nifty CS Methods Activities

2024-25 Topics:

  • Fall - Examples of CS Teacher Ed Programs
  • Winter - Designing Programs & Courses
  • Spring - Challenges & Strategies in CS Teacher Ed
Resources

Planning Your Program

CSTA Guidance for Schools of Education (case studies, activities, field experiences, etc.)

Ottenbreit-Leftwich, A. T., Childs, J., Fletcher, C., Kim, J., Edwards, K. M., & Hendrickson, K. (2022). Defining computer science teacher qualification pathways. Policy Futures in Education, 14782103221123364.

CS Visions Cards © 2024 by CITE & PrepareCS Teams is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International

Publications

Anderson, E., Liao, Y. C., Mbaezue, I., Rosato, J., & Friend, M. (2026). Expanding the capacity for equitable computer science education: Strategies and challenges in teacher preparation pathway development. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/21532974.2026.2672932

Anderson, E., Liao, Y. C., Mbaezue, I., Rosato, J., & Friend, M. (2026, February). Programmatic, Policy, and Communication Challenges in Developing CS Teacher Preparation Pathways. In Proceedings of the 57th ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education V. 1 (pp. 59-65). https://doi.org/10.1145/3770762.3772629 

Karlin, M., Frankel, J. M., Ruiz, A., Mehta, S., Liao, Y.-C. J., Minaiy, M., & Oh-Young, C. (2026). Transformative Computing Education: A Four-Year Exploratory Case Study of Teacher Perceptions Towards Elementary Computer Science Integration. Education Sciences, 16(4), 634. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16040634

Terrell, K.L., Cardona Collins, K., Bal, I., Gómez, M. & Bannerman, Q. (2026). Computational thinking for all: Expanding support for teacher preparation. In Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference (pp. 3461-3466). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE).  https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/2129462 

Yeh, C.J., Liao, Y-C., Meador, M. & Hsiao, W.Y. (2025, March). Designing Innovative Computing Education Learning Modules for Early Childhood Preservice Teachers. In R. Jake Cohen (Ed.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference (pp. 1984-1988). Orlando, FL, USA: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/226023/