Oracle is reported to break ground on a brand new building in Silicon Valley. The new building will be for a public charter school, Design Tech High School, which will stand alongside its Silicon Valley headquarters.
As reported in Tech Times, Oracle is planning to build a tuition-free high school that will focus on teaching Science, Technology, Engineering, Problem Solving Skills and Design Thinking to prepare students for career in the field of Technology.
Technology companies such as Oracle have been to integrate more science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) to junior high and high school kids for several years now. Other companies are said to have launched several initiatives towards with this goal however Oracle has taken it in their hands to build an actual high school on its Silicon Valley campus.
The current CEO of Oralce, Safra Catz, recalles how the former CEO and founder Larry Ellison had always wanted a high school that would teach students to thinks 17 years ago. Oracle is slowly making this vision to a reality by building the Design Tech High School.
"Our support of d.tech reflects Larry's vision for a unique high school founded on principles we believe in: innovation, creativity, problem-solving and design-thinking," Catz said in a press release. "We couldn't be more excited to build this school on our campus and to see the positive impact it will undoubtedly have on the students, teachers, Oracle employees and the Bay Area community."
Design Tech High School is expected to be complete in the fall of 2017, an important mark in making this dream a reality. It is said that the Design Tech School first launched way back in 2014 however it currently shares facilities with another school. The Oracle Education Foundation has seen great potential and decided to adopt the school with employees in Oracle volunteering and teaching workshops in various topics such as design and coding.
Furthermore, the company plans to build an LEED-certified, state of the art school of 64,000 square feet, ready to accommodate 550 students, 30 faculty members and the local community.
Watch the video below for more information about Oracle's ambitious project. Though the school will not require tuition, student acceptance process will be highly selective.