N.C. A&T State University Project Summary
Targeted Infusion Project: Developing a Social Computing Program at N.C, A&T
Dr. Justin Zhan, Department of computer Science
The objective of this Targeted Infusion Project is to establish a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (BSCS)
concentration in Social Computing at North Carolina A&T State University (N.C. A&T). With the government's
growing interest in social computing and the increasing investment by social media organizations in technology,
training in social computing or social computational systems will give graduates some of the strongest career
opportunities in today's economy. Graduates with this training are uniquely prepared to inform empirical research,
professional practice, and public and social policy as it pertains to both information technology and social change in a
globalized society.
The proposed project will be the joint effort of three departments at N.C. A&T. To establish this BSCS concentration
in social computing, PIs propose the development of two new courses in the Department of Computer Science, a new
course in the Department of Mathematics, and a new course in the Department of Sociology that will include topics
on social computing. The N.C. A&T team proposes the establishment of a social computing lab within the existing
infrastructure and the development of three software tools for teaching and research in social computing.
Intellectual Merit: The proposed project will create a new, interdisciplinary curriculum model for a BSCS
concentration in Social Computing. Such a curriculum will produce computer science graduates who have skills in
social computing. It will also allow students in the field of computer science to learn about social computing and
social computational systems, allow students in mathematics to apply mathematics to social computing, and allow
students in sociology and psychology to learn about social computational systems. The proposed project will also
create new courses such as introduction to social computational systems, mathematics for social computing science,
and social issues relating to social computing. The curriculum and instructional materials can be adopted by faculty at
other colleges and universities.
The PIs and senior personnel in this proposal have unique and diverse experience in education and research in the
areas of computing, mathematics, and sociology. Their complementary experiences will result in the development of
the interdisciplinary program – the BSCS concentration in Social Computing. Our team also includes an expert in
evaluation who will continuously conduct formative and summative assessment of our progress. The feedback will be
used to adjust the project’s direction and to evaluate the attainment of the project’s goals.
Broader Impacts The project team will host a workshop at the ASE/IEEE International Conference on Social
Computing. In the workshop, the team will provide instructional materials for the new courses and introduce the
software tools that were developed in the social computing lab. The software will be freely available on CDs and the
PIs will demonstrate how to use the tools.
This project will increase the educational and career opportunities for African American students. As an HBCU, N.C.
A&T is the nation’s leading producer of African American bachelors graduates in engineering. This project will help
the students at N.C. A&T to be more competitive in the workforce and for graduate school. It will have a broad
impact on students in the disciplines of computer science, mathematics, and sociology.
Societal benefits of this project include new educational materials and improved educational opportunities for training
students to tackle tomorrow’s social computing challenges. This project will impact our society through producing
graduates to satisfy an ever-increasing need for social computational system professionals.
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