The White House will be hosting its first ever film festival on Friday celebrating the work of K-12 students as a part of the Obama administration’s “ConnectEd” campaign to bring sophisticated technologies to schools across the country.
According to NBC News, the festival is the result of a competition initiated by the White House last November for students to create short films demonstrating the use of technology in schools and education. Out of the 2,000 plus videos submitted, 128 received honorable mentions while 16 will be screened during the festival.
The Washington Post reports that President Obama recently pledged to bring high speed internet to the entirety of the nation’s classrooms presumably by 2018. Over $1 billion has been generated for the project so far, including donations from tech giants Apple, Adobe, and Hungarian software company Prezi.
During a Maryland school visit last month Obama remarked, “In a country where we expect free Wi-Fi with our coffee, we should definitely demand it in our schools.”
The festival will include special guests for students and parents that includes science superstars Neil deGrasse Tyson and Bill Nye, along with actor Kal Penn and comedic talk show host Conan O’Brien.
Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
