From left: Robert Domanski, director of Higher Education, NYC TTP; Akira Kawaguchi; Tiffany Jackson, academic program specialist at CCNY's Department of Computer Science; and Lauren Anderson, executive director, NYC TTP.
The City College of New York’s Akira Kawaguchi, chair of the Department of Computer Science at The Grove School of Engineering, is named the 2019 NYC Tech Innovator from the NYC Tech Talent Pipeline. Kawaguchi and his team are recognized for their efforts in doubling the number of students graduating annually with tech-related bachelor’s degrees through the CUNY 2X Tech initiative.
Under the initiative, CCNY was awarded $2.3 million, and Kawaguchi implemented the Computer Science Co-op Program, a collaboration with the Career and Professional Development Institute the two-semester-long program is designed to deliver qualified tech talent to local employers and short-term professional opportunities to competitive NYC undergraduates.
He is recognized for offering students new advanced in-demand courses in emerging tech fields, as well as prioritizing the conversion of some of those courses into permanent offerings. Kawaguchi convened an industry advisory board for the Department of Computer Science in order to have a sustainable feedback loop with the industry.
Prior to his academic career, Kawaguchi worked for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. as an assistant manager in its Tokyo presidential office. There he was awarded the Mitsubishi's two-year fellowship for his graduate studies at Columbia University. Since 1997, he has been a faculty member at CCNY and The Graduate Center, CUNY.
About The City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 1.2% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Emsi puts at $1.9 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers and society. At City College, more than 16,000 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity and scholarship. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.
Ashley Arocho
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aarocho@ccny.cuny.edu
View CCNY Media Kit.