Renaissance computing: An initiative for promoting student participation in computing

We report on a recently funded project called Renaissance Computing, an initiative for promoting student participation in computing. We propose a radical re-thinking not only of our core curriculum in CS, but of the role of CS at the university level. In our conception, ''computational thinking'' is neither easily separated from other endeavors nor easily balkanized into a single department. We thus imagine a CS curriculum that is inextricably linked to other domains. Our proposed initiative covers introductory, depth, and capstone courses, targeting both CS majors and minors. It is also aimed to develop interdisciplinary CS courses in sciences, engineering, arts, and humanities. Furthermore, the framework embraces collaborative learning to help improve learning.