UW’s Wyo BEE curriculum to enhance blockchain and digital literacy in high schools

The University of Wyoming has announced that a program to enhance blockchain, finance and digital literacy learning for Wyoming high school students will be available through Wyo BEE in fall 2024.

According to UW, Wyo BEE — which stands for Wyoming Blockchain Education for Everyone — will supply 12 teaching modules for high school juniors, seniors and community college students to access. Included in the program is a textbook, co-written by Steve Lupien, UW Center for Blockchain and Digital Innovation director. The modules also will have teacher’s manuals, quizzes and digital certification for students who successfully complete the coursework. A digital game to help reinforce what students learn also is planned for the program.

“Wyoming has become a world leader in blockchain-related laws,” Lupien said. “It is important that high school, community college and university students, as well as the public, learn about the impacts of blockchain.”

According to Lupien, Wyoming has passed more than 35 bills enabling blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital assets that are intended to positively affect Wyoming’s economy by creating jobs, developing new businesses and attracting existing blockchain and digital assets businesses to the state.

Lupien and Michelle Aldrich, Wyoming Department of Education state director of Career and Technical Education, are principal leads for the program. Wyo BEE was created through funding made available to states by the federal government to develop initiatives to rebuild their economies following the COVID-19 pandemic. To administer the funds, the Wyoming Innovation Partnership was created at the request of Gov. Mark Gordon in 2021 to modernize and focus Wyoming’s efforts to develop a resilient workforce and economy.

Wyo BEE aims to better align Wyoming’s economic development agenda by increasing collaborations between state entities and, ultimately, local partners. The partnership involves UW, the state’s community colleges, Wyoming Business Council and the Department of Workforce Services, with an emphasis on developing innovative solutions that support and enhance Wyoming’s economy, workforce and sources of revenue.

Two high schools in Green River and Kemmerer are taking part in a pilot Wyo BEE program this school year, Aldrich said, with faculty members from Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs incorporating the curriculum into the classrooms.

“We are really excited that teachers across Wyoming — whether they are business and marketing teachers, whether they are family and consumer science teachers or economics teachers at the secondary or the postsecondary level — will have the opportunity to help educate their students about blockchain education and digital assets,” Aldrich said.

Wyo BEE materials are designed to be updated on a regular basis to provide the latest information, trends and developments in digital assets. Future plans will expand the program to UW, community college and adult education students.

Those assisting Lupien and Aldrich in producing Wyo BEE materials were Candace Ryder, a UW instructional designer; Cindy and Bill Taylor, publishers of Digital Wealth News; and Jahon Jamali, CEO and founder of American Crypto Academy. Jamali is a featured presenter in the Wyo BEE videos.