FACEBOOK FRIENDS HUB SCHOOLS
Bunker Hill, Roxbury CC among 20 colleges nationwide
A new partnership between Facebook and community colleges around the country, including Bunker Hill Community College and Roxbury Community College, aims to help solve the digital skills gap and teach students digital marketing, the company said.
“What we know and what all of you know is that when people get the opportunity to get the training they need, they can get great jobs,” said Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook, speaking at the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Boston yesterday. “It is up to us to help provide that training.”
The partnership will see Facebook work with 20 community colleges across the country to teach students how to put Facebook and Instagram to work. Facebook said it plans to train a million business owners and others by 2020 on its platform. The company will also create a free online training center where users can learn basic digital skills.
“It will be things like helping develop and improve resumes, there will be resources for entrepreneurs to increase their business,” said Parisa Zagat, head of U.S. digital skills for Facebook. “Small businesses have told us they need more people with digital skills. As the economy is changing, people want to have access to those skills.”
Facebook has already created Facebook Blueprint, a set of tools for businesses that teaches how to use Facebook’s business-focused services. Sandberg said 10 million small businesses across the country use Facebook at least once a month.
“It’s a very large investment,” Zagat said.
Having Roxbury and Bunker Hill community colleges take part was welcome news.
“It’s great that it’s going to be Bunker Hill and Roxbury, one of the things people need is greater access to technology and greater understanding of technology for the jobs that are here now and coming in the future,” Mayor Martin J. Walsh said. “It’s still one of the most successful companies ever, and the fact that we can partner them up with two of our schools in Boston, the young people in Boston, is only going to be a benefit to the people who go to school in those colleges.”
Karen Norton of Bunker Hill said the college will work with Facebook to develop a new curriculum for students that will eventually become a full program with a certificate for those who complete it.
“It’s something we don’t have here now, we only have a few classes that touch on Facebook or digital marketing,” Norton said. “We’re not touching on the social media part of it, or getting into that type of marketing.”
Speaking at a session focused on cities and technology after giving Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s commencement address yesterday morning, Sandberg acknowledged Facebook’s recent controversies centered on election interference, data privacy and fake news, saying the company is trying to turn over a new leaf.
“I don’t think we paid enough attention to the things that could also happen on our platform,” she said. “We know that it’s not just about technology, it’s about people. When you build something, it’s going to be used by people. People are capable of immense beauty but people are capable of harm . ... We need to make sure our tools are used for good.”
‘One of the things people need is greater ... understanding of technology for the jobs that are here now and coming in the future.’ — MARTIN J. WALSH, mayor of Boston