Ryan Holder

Ryan Holder saw a career pivot as a necessity.

Before discovering Per Scholas, Ryan spent his life immersed in the vibrant, fast-paced world of the arts and entertainment industries. But when a dramatic life change and a disability forced him to step away from the stage and the studio, he found himself at a crossroads. He needed a new path—one that could accommodate his new reality while still offering a sense of purpose.

That’s when a recommendation from a friend, who had graduated from Per Scholas over a decade prior, resurfaced.

Enrolling in Per Scholas during the height of the pandemic, Ryan was suddenly thrust into a highly structured, intensive, full-time remote learning environment. For someone navigating a disability and a history of academic self-doubt, the learning curve felt difficult.

“It was a learning curve, seriously. Understanding how a whole other world works… learning hardware, software, and then cybersecurity—it was all a whole other language, and I only speak one!” Ryan recalls.

Despite the intensity, Ryan found his anchor in the Per Scholas community. Guided by dedicated instructors, he found himself surrounded by a beautifully diverse group of peers. To keep up, Ryan realized he had to embrace vulnerability.

“Be authentic,” Ryan advises future learners. “There were plenty of times when I was behind. Instead of pretending, I’d figure out how to bridge that gap. You start building not only relationships but also learning to step out into areas where you’re not comfortable. Life is outside of your comfort zone, and it is so worth it.”

The true turning point came when it was time to take his first IT certification exam. When he sat for it and passed, the breakthrough wasn’t just professional—it was deeply psychological.

“Getting that certification sparked a curiosity in me,” he comments.

That spark turned into a flame. Ryan didn’t stop at his foundational certifications. Fueled by a passion for the cutting edge, he returned to Per Scholas for a second cohort. There, weekly current-events presentations sharpened his analytical skills, prompting him to delve deeper into advanced tech. He continued to upskill.

Today, Ryan holds three powerful credentials:

• CompTIA Security+
• CySA+ (Cybersecurity Analyst)
• Microsoft AI Fundamentals

“It’s good to know that you have value,” Ryan shares. “Knowing that this knowledge can serve you in many ways is really transformative. I don’t see technology as being for someone else anymore. It’s given me patience. It has afforded me the mental space of knowing I can do anything.”

When Ryan looks to the future, he aims to be a guardian of humanity in the digital space. His ultimate goal is to work in tech oversight, specifically focusing on mitigating bias in artificial intelligence.

“As we develop languages and put ourselves into a machine, that machine is going to be a mirror of who we are, with a lot less humanity,” Ryan explains. “The only thing that keeps me going nowadays is making sure I understand as much as I possibly can to keep future systems as unbiased as possible.”

When asked what he would say to the champions who make Per Scholas’ no-cost tech bootcamps possible, Ryan’s message is clear: Keep investing in the overlooked.

“Keep more of an eye on people with disabilities, the people you typically wouldn’t think could be in tech. I never thought I could do it. This is an opportunity for people with different minds to achieve different outcomes, and that’s just potential in itself.”

Per Scholas has given Ryan an education, like-minded tech friends, and parts of himself to discover, showing that with a little curiosity and support, the tech space is truly open to all.