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Per Scholas Chosen to Provide Tech Training and Prepare More Un- or Underemployed Adults for Careers

NEW YORK (June 30, 2016) – This week, the Obama Administration announced $150 million in funding from the Department of Labor through TechHire partnership grants for organizations to launch innovative training and placement models to develop tech talent, as a way to keep and create jobs in local economies. Per Scholas, a national IT workforce development organization, will be implementing programs at for four of its sites – the National Capital Region, New York City, Columbus, and Greater Cincinnati. This funding will enable Per Scholas to deepen and expand its model for workforce development in order to provide life-changing business and life skills and to drive economic mobility for individuals in these regions.

In New York and the National Capital Region, funding will support Pathways to Tech Careers, a project in partnership with Jobs for the Future and General Assembly. Per Scholas’ Cincinnati and Columbus sites will participate as training providers for two other TechHire Partnership programs that are focused on connecting un- or underemployed individuals with careers in IT.

“We’re extremely honored to be a TechHire recipient. This award will enable us have an even greater impact on businesses, our students, and in the communities in which we work,” noted Plinio Ayala, president and chief executive officer of Per Scholas. “With this new funding, we can train and prepare even more individuals for a career in tech and ultimately, have long-term economic success and social mobility.”

Pathways to Tech Careers will establish and expand accelerated training programs that prepare youth and young adults with barriers to employment for high-wage, high-demand careers in IT in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Maryland. As implementing partners, Per Scholas and General Assembly will offer three different training programs, including web development boot camps, training in data analytics, and IT security, catered to young adults, veterans and other displaced workers.

This funding comes as part of $150 million in TechHire Partnership grants awarded to 39 programs across the country. Recognizing the unmet demand for tech workers around the country, President Obama launched TechHire to encourage states, cities, and rural areas to collaborate with employers and training providers to design and implement innovative approaches to develop the tech workforce. The grants are intended to enable communities to expand their local tech sectors.

Launched in 1995, Per Scholas provides rigorous and tuition-free technology training and professional development to people who are un- or underemployed. Oftentimes, these individuals are unable find sustainable pathways out of low-wage work, and Per Scholas provides free, effective training and program supports that enable them to launch successful careers in technology, while creating onramps to businesses in need of their talents. To date, Per Scholas has trained more than 5,000 individuals, helping them build successful careers in the tech sector. Per Scholas has been shown to produce large impacts in two separate independent studies – mostly recently by the WorkAdvance study as well as in the 2010 Sector Employment Impact Study.

To view the White House announcement, visit https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/06/27/fact-sheet-expanding-tech-economies-communities-across-country.

NEW YORK (June 30, 2016) – This week, the Obama Administration announced $150 million in funding from the Department of Labor through TechHire partnership grants for organizations to launch innovative training and placement models to develop tech talent, as a way to keep and create jobs in local economies. Per Scholas, a national IT workforce development organization, will be implementing programs at for four of its sites – the National Capital Region, New York City, Columbus, and Greater Cincinnati. This funding will enable Per Scholas to deepen and expand its model for workforce development in order to provide life-changing business and life skills and to drive economic mobility for individuals in these regions.

On Tuesday, June 21, 2016, Per Scholas and the Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF) hosted Diverse by Design, the first in a conversation series about building diversity and inclusion in the workforce.

Nearly 200 guests comprising of C-Suite individuals, employer partners, and representatives from workforce development convened at Google’s New York City Headquarters to hear from Fortune 500 thought leaders in technology, finance, energy, and social impact. Damien Howard, Vice President of Social Ventures at Per Scholas opened the event with this quote: “To make a real impact on Diversity and Inclusion you need to be focused and courageous.” This page highlights speakers and key learning moments from the event.

IGNITE PRESENTATION

• Gene Waddy, CEO, DIVERSANT

Gene Waddy shared how inspiration from his father helped launch him toward a career as an engineer. He also discussed the importance of passing down similar inspirations to his son to help encourage his success in school, in his career and in his life. Mr. Waddy closed his remarks encouraging the audience to take action in achieving what they desire saying, “The parachute won’t open unless you jump.”

SOLUTIONS PANEL

• Presented by Ken Walker, VP, National Site Operations, Per Scholas
• Moderated by Harvey Butler, Global Head of Supplier Diversity, Barclays
• Andi Azzolina, Director, Shared Development Services, JetBlue Airways
• Nedra Dickson, Global Supplier Diversity & Sustainability Lead, Accenture
• Claudia Lee Healy, Vice President, Global Talent Acquisition & Development, Verizon
• Wayne Kunow, Global Head of Information Risk Management, Barclays
• Sarah Ayres Steinberg, Vice President, Global Philanthropy, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

The Solutions panel offered audience members action-oriented solutions to some of the most challenging diversity issues facing the technology industry. Moderator, Harvey Butler summarized the central obstacle stating, “Talent is ubiquitous, opportunity is not.” Panelists discussed how they established new talent pipelines to strengthen their organizations and the importance of an inclusive work culture and in recruiting and retaining a high caliber of diverse tech talent. Sarah Ayres Steinberg of JPMorgan Chase & Co. advocated for “approaching the skills gap and diversity gap in a holistic way creates opportunities for incredible success.”

CLOSING REMARKS

• Viola Maxwell-Thompson, President & CEO, ITSMF
• Plinio Ayala, President & CEO, Per Scholas

During the closing remarks, Per Scholas President and CEO Plinio Ayala announced the creation of the Diverse by Design National Working Group that will influence and provide oversight on the direction of future Diverse by Design conversations. The National Working Group will focus on ways to uncover, distill, and promote the best solutions to attract more diverse talent to all ranks of the technology sector. “They will ensure this important conversation continues,” said Plinio.

On June 21, Per Scholas and the Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF) will together host Diverse by Design, the first in a conversation series about building diversity and inclusion in the workforce.

The day has come.

After 20 years of being asked, “Do you offer night or weekend classes?” we are thrilled to announce that the answer to that question is now “Yes!”

Per Scholas New York and the NYC Tech Talent Pipeline have partnered together to provide part-time job training courses tailored to meet employer demand in the technology sector:  Series A: IT and Series A: QA.

Created in response to employer need and designed to provide industry-designed pathways for New Yorkers with no previous technical experience, the NYC Tech Talent Pipeline’s Series A programs will prepare participants for jobs in a number of training tracks, including IT Engineers and Quality Assurance Testers.

The courses will be held in Per Scholas’ South Bronx location during evenings and weekends over the course of 20 weeks, Monday – Thursday from 6:00PM to 9:00PM and Saturdays from 9:30AM to 5:30PM. Applications are currently being accepted.

ABOUT THE NYC TECH TALENT PIPELINE

• The technology industry is among the fastest growing and highest paying sectors in New York City today representing nearly 300,000 jobs and $30 billion in wages annually.
• Employment across the New York City tech ecosystem grew by 57% between 2007 and 2014 – nearly 6 times faster than citywide employment overall.
• While business struggle to fill open technology positions, technology jobs remain out of reach for many New Yorkers who lack access to the technology training and education necessary to become active participants in the 21st century economy.
• To address this challenge, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio launched the NYC Tech Talent Pipeline in May 2014, a $10 million industry partnership designed to deliver quality jobs for New Yorkers and quality talent for New York’s businesses.
• The NYC Tech Talent Pipeline is an industry partnership designed to support the growth of the City’s tech ecosystem and prepare New Yorkers for 21st century jobs.

Per Scholas is proud to bring its two decades of expertise preparing New Yorkers from every community to contribute to the city’s booming tech ecosystem. Opening up flexible training schedule options will only further our reach and allow us to train nearly 500 students across every borough this year. Thank you to NYC Tech Talent Pipeline and NYC Small Business Services. Learn more at perscholas.org/apply.

In the year 2012, Qahir Zaeem, 22 at the time, had recently moved to the United States from Pakistan. He barely spoke English and he felt lost in a new country. Flash forward to now, Qahir was voted valedictorian of his Per Scholas class and delivered the Valedictorian address to a room full of peers, colleagues, teachers, friends and family. His transformation began at our doors.

He arrived to the United States with optimism. He held a degree in Engineering from his home country and felt confident it would not be difficult to get a job in America. After months of sending out hundreds of resumes, his search for a job in technology was fruitless. He settled for a job that would pay the bills but he wasn’t utilizing his education. 

He started looking into technology schools in the New York area to find that many for-profit schools didn’t provide the professional development training he knew he would need to succeed. Then he came across Per Scholas. Enticed by the opportunity to take free classes, Qahir didn’t apply immediately, skeptical that the “free” advertising had a catch. 

One day not long after this encounter, Qahir was reading The New York Times and saw an article featuring a Per Scholas graduate. Realizing the program’s success and legitimacy, Qahir took the time to apply and learn more.

To gain admittance into a Per Scholas course, every applicant must take a basic adult educational assessment (TABE). Despite English being his second language, Qahir failed the English portion of the test by only one mark. Forlorn and discouraged because of his close failure to get into Per Scholas, Qahir resumed his day job. 

A second chance came. He received a phone call from Rosa Matos of Per Scholas. Rosa described to him an alternative route into the IT Support class:  TechBridge, a five-week bridge program for young adults who are well suited for the Per Scholas training and qualify for math and English tutoring. The program catches participants up in the basic educational content while also priming them for success in Per Scholas’ intensive IT Support course. On round two, Qahir successfully passed the exam. 

The next hurdle was to pass the very intensive course—and not miss the train. “Per Scholas’ IT support course was like a full-time job and the commute was no laughing matter. I traveled from the far reaches of Queens to the South Bronx,” Qahir said of his three hour train ride. There is a zero-tolerance attendance policy the first two weeks of the course with no exceptions if students show up to the start of class even one minute late. Qahir made it.

From his overall experience, Qahir notes benefitting most from the course was the career development provided, the part of the course that teaches essential workplace skills like communication, interviewing, and workplace etiquette. “I simply was shy. But through the outstanding career development sessions, I learned more than just how to fix up my resume. They helped me gain confidence in my ability to communicate my thoughts effectively to any crowd I faced,” Qahir shares.

That confidence allowed Qahir to deliver a heartwarming and powerful valedictorian speech. “Before I was shaking. Now I am confident. I have built relationships and skills that will ultimately be beneficial and valuable for the longevity of my career. It was worth the three hour train ride.”

Qahir interviewed with 10 companies three weeks after graduating and accepted a position with Optimum as a Technical Support Representative. 

“There is no replacement for hard work. If you are a hard worker, it doesn’t matter what color or what background you have. If you are determined or you are a hard worker, you can do anything.”

To learn more about Qahir, click here.