3.31.2020

Per Scholas New York Students and Alumni,

As we all band together to work through this challenging time, please use this page as a reference guide for supportive opportunities in the New York City community. All of the items here are publicly available resources, not offered by Per Scholas, that you may tap into if applicable. It is your responsibility to read the fine print and understand the various options.

We know that as Per Scholas students, you are dedicated to building skills, providing for your family and loved ones and establishing yourselves in fulfilling careers, and we’re dedicated to providing the support you need to facilitate your success during this time.

Internet Access

As you get comfortable with the remote learning and working environment, we wanted to make you aware of the Federal Communication Commission’s newly adopted Keep Americans Connected Pledge. Over 70 companies including the big four wireless carriers (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon) and internet service providers Comcast and Google Fiber have committed to maintaining service and waiving late fees for the next 60 days.

They are also opening additional free WiFi hotspots across the country. More information can be found on the FCC’s website.

Additionally Spectrum is offering opportunities for families to get free WiFi hotspots to help you stay connected.

Comcast has also released an update regarding free Xfinity hotspots and other changes to their policies to support Americans during this time.

If you could benefit from free mobile access, Mint Mobile is offering free unlimited high-speed data access through April 14th.

In addition, we have rapidly deployed technology to our students, including laptops, webcams and portable wifis. If you still do not feel that you have the technology or connection needed to be successful during this time, please reach out to questions@perscholas.org.

NYC Housing: Rent, eviction and foreclosure support for NYC residents

For students who have concerns about their current housing circumstances and need support to consider opportunities to avoid eviction, foreclosure and other housing related concerns: https://www1.nyc.gov/site/dhs/prevention/rent-issues.page

In addition, there are two hotlines available to students who have housing related questions. The first is Housing Court Answers and the second is the Met Council on Housing Tenants Rights Hotline.

Food Security

For students and alumni who are currently having difficulty accessing food and need support right now the Food Bank of NYC has an updated list of pantries and soup kitchens.

For students who are currently receiving SNAP benefits, the corporate expense tracking company Expensify.org is currently running a promotional campaign where you can receive a $50 reimbursement on purchases made using your SNAP card. Visit this link to learn more: https://www.expensify.org/hunger

Supporting Your Neighbors

Mutual Aid NYC is a network of neighborhood nonprofits and everyday volunteers that are banding together to build localized, community support systems in neighborhoods across New York City. Members include parents, senior citizens, immigrants, people with disabilities and chronic illness, caregivers, care workers, organizers, advocates, coders, and anyone else who wants to get involved.

Individuals who want to help out their neighbors are welcome to volunteer their services, and the network also has a place to ask what you need, and share some ideas for what can be done to support you and your community. There is no ask that is too big or two small – the network aims to connect people who want to give, and assist those in need with accessing the help that is available.

Mental Health and Wellness

Weill Cornell Medicine Center for Human Rights has compiled a guide to free or low cost mental health resources available in New York City.

In addition, if you are experiencing increased anxiety or stress right now, there are a number of virtual supports available. In NYC, Thrive NYC has a variety of resources and crisis counseling available via their hotline or text functions. Crisis Textline is also providing crisis counseling.

Remote Work

Remote work and learning is challenging, here are links to two online resources that may be helpful to review and problem-solve some learn-from-home techniques:

New York Times: How to Work from Home

Psychology Today: How to Concentrate When You’re Working from Home

Per Scholas is here to support you through this difficult and trying time. Please reach out to our Student Experience team, our on-site Social Workers and Financial Coaches, with any questions or specific concerns. While we might not be able to support you directly, we will do our best to provide you with the information you need and to connect you with trusted resources.

Per Scholas staff have been working closely together to support this transition to remote work and learning and if you have any questions please reach out directly to questions@perscholas.org.

With respect, appreciation, and care,

Abe Mendez

ActivateIT Powered by Per Scholas will prepare overlooked communities for the Denver IT job market and provide local employers with the tech talent they need.

Activate, a Denver-based professional placement and coaching firm, has announced an innovative new partnership with national tech training nonprofit Per Scholas to give local businesses access to the tech talent they need. The companies have co-launched ActivateIT Powered by Per Scholas, offering tuition-free technology training and professional development to individuals from diverse Denver communities.

Since 2016, Activate has been helping employers in the financial services, business services, healthcare, and trade sectors hire and develop talent from underrepresented populations. Activate will leverage Per Scholas’ proven IT training platform to expand its services into the IT sector, which is experiencing a profound workforce shortage of almost one million unfilled jobs in 2019.

Combining two proven training models, ActivateIT Powered by Per Scholas will offer students the ability to earn industry-recognized credentials for in-demand roles such as network and security administration, IT security, data engineering, Salesforce administration, and quality assurance. Participants will also receive professional and life skills coaching to ensure they thrive in their new careers.

“Simply, ActivateIT Powered by Per Scholas is a business-led economic development solution. By partnering with Per Scholas, we’re able to supply businesses with the highly-skilled talent they need, while providing the opportunity for low-wage earners to move into middle-income jobs with growth potential,” said Activate CEO and Founder Helen Young Hayes. “We’re thrilled to be able to provide Per Scholas’ time-tested IT and career training alongside our individualized professional development curriculum.”

“After meeting with Activate, we quickly realized that we have significant alignment in our values, mission, and operations – especially when it comes to building stronger and healthier workforce programs, families, and communities more broadly,” said Plinio Ayala, CEO of Per Scholas. “With the launch of ActivateIT Powered by Per Scholas, we’ll be able to extend these opportunities in Denver and provide more workers with the skills they need to be successful in today’s evolving workforce.”

Per Scholas has trained more than 10,000 IT professionals in 11 cities over the last 25 years, providing comprehensive market-led talent solutions for over 500 businesses including Cognizant, TEKsystems, and Capital One. Per Scholas’ nationally replicated model has produced skilled, committed employees who thrive in their careers. Eighty-five percent of Per Scholas students graduate and 70% of placements stay retained in the job after one year. Per Scholas graduates earn, on average four times more in annual income, with average annual incomes increasing from $9,000 pre-training to $37,000 post-placement. By 2023, Per Scholas aims to reach an additional 4,000 students each year by training more people in current markets and expanding new training operations to cities across the country

Through its proprietary screening and coaching model, Activate has developed an employer-driven placement and retention program, with over 80% of the firm’s placements thriving in the same company twelve months after being hired. Activate’s placements are retained at 3x the rate of incumbents, saving employers an average of $12,000 per placement, while the firm’s placements increase their annual earnings by an average of nearly $20,000.

ActivateIT Powered by Per Scholas will enroll 48 individuals this year. In its first five years, ActivateIT will provide technology training to 500 individuals, with 400 placed into IT careers, creating a business-led solution for economic development.

Alexander was born in Malawi, one of Africa’s poorest nations. After moving to the United States to advance his education, he encountered various personal and financial troubles. Alexander needed to consider a career alternative, not just for his future, but that of his family.

Title: Senior Coordinator for Help Support

Employer: Capital One

Location: Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas

Program/Course Name: IT Support

A Dream an Ocean Over

The seventh of nine children, Alexander grew up in Africa where he and his siblings all shared responsibilities around the house. He enjoyed learning and was the first in his family to go to college. He studied education at the University of Malawi and taught geography as a high school teacher for several years. However, what he made as a teacher was not enough even though he continued to provide for his family.

As the only educated member in his family, Alexander needed to support his family the best he could. To meet the financial needs he hoped, Alexander decided to look elsewhere, beyond Malawi, beyond Africa. Education was both a career and a personal interest of his so he decided to study abroad and get his master’s degree.

“I had hoped to leverage my education to better provide for my family. To do this, I dreamed of moving to the United States and excelling in my career there.”

Educational Background before IT Training

Alexander was off to start his new life in Boston, Massachusetts where he enrolled at Brandeis University. His family had pooled all of their funds together to finance his travel to America. However, his transition to the Northeast was not easy. Even with a partial scholarship, between paying for his tuition and living expenses, he could no longer afford school and had to drop out.

Hoping to still complete his degree, he moved to Texas to live with a distant relative and enrolled at Dallas Baptist University. After one semester, he could no longer support himself nor send funds back home to his family. Once again, Alexander withdrew from college and immediately began looking for a full-time job.

A Tech Genesis

For a time, Alexander worked at a local nursing home that paid $10/hour. It was barely enough to afford his basic living expenses. Although he stayed with his relative, he still needed to pay his share of rent. While attending a local church he came across a flyer for Per Scholas Dallas and their free IT certification training. Alexander always had an interest in technology. Back home in Malawi, he and his brother dabbled with operating a small computer repair business providing computer technical support to locals. The business still operates to this day!

He was skeptical about the absolutely free training offered by Per Scholas as per the flyer. “I have been paying a lot of money for education and you’re telling me that someone is going to give me IT training for free?” Fortunately, the person who placed the flyer was both a member of the church and an alum of Per Scholas. They encouraged him to attend an upcoming information session for IT Support training.

Alexander held off applying in order to build up his savings to finance himself throughout the ten weeks of training. “If I was going to do this, I wanted to make sure that I had all the support I needed. That meant quitting my job and focus only on my training. I was still paying back a loan for the semester I attended in Boston.”

At times it was challenging, especially when taking public transportation. To get to class, Alexander needed to take a 15-minute bus ride which took him to a train station where he had to travel 45 minutes to the Dallas metro area. “Students were expected to adhere to the strict attendance policy, so I had to wake up very early to make sure I was on time.” Sometimes Alexander stayed late to work with his peers to finish assignments, but for him, it was worth it!

After passing his CompTIA A+ certification exam, he was ready to find a job. He uploaded his resume whenever he could, attending networking events to get his name out in the job market. Still, there were no offers forthcoming. “It tested the best of me. I was interviewing and getting calls, but no job.”

Capital Gain

A month after graduating, Alexander was called in to interview at Capital One. He was selected among 20 other applicants for a contract position. Six months into the role, he was brought on board as a full-time associate working as Senior Coordinator for Help Desk Support where he currently trains and helps to onboard new hires.

“I am grateful for my experience at Per Scholas Dallas. I am able to envision a professional future for myself. I’m proud to be an alum because I also get to see other students come out of the training and find career success. Even here at Capital One, on a different team, there is another Per Scholas graduate who started out as a team leader and was soon promoted to principal coordinator. That only speaks to the caliber of the training we received from Per Scholas. We do our best, but Per Scholas is what helped us to realize and maximize our potential.”

Alex currently works at Capital One as a Senior Coordinator for Help Desk Support and continues to learn more about the field and progress his skill sets. To learn more about our IT Support course and other course offerings, visit our apply page.

Info on our upcoming program in Denver is coming soon! Be sure to check back in the new year.

“It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish,” began Per Scholas Philadelphia valedictorian, Joshua Keesee. “What’s important though is to find where you get that start.”

Per Scholas celebrated the Philadelphia and Detroit inaugural graduations on October 30 and November 1, respectively, and graduates from each site are well on their way to leading promising careers in tech. Both locations were established in partnership with Per Scholas Champion Partner TEKsystems, a hiring and training partner since 2013 who has hired more than 400 Per Scholas graduates. Following successful launches in Baltimore and Boston, this partnership continues to aspire towards transforming the Philadelphia and Detroit regional markets by building an inclusive, job-ready tech workforce.

Origin Stories: Passions for Technology

Joshua grew up in the DC area where his father worked for the government. From time to time his father would return home with old tech equipment which his office would throw out. Fascinated by it, Joshua would take apart the equipment and reassemble it. As he grew older, his interest in hardware and software lessened but remained an interest of his as the right opportunity to jump-start his career wasn’t available until he discovered Per Scholas. “Per Scholas and TEKsystems have provided me with an opportunity to jump into an industry I am passionate about…that will give me the opportunity and benefit to be home with my children and to feel fulfilled in my career.”

For Cortez Christian, the prospect for a career in tech was cut short due to personal circumstances that resulted in him withdrawing from the University of Michigan where he enrolled as a computer science major.

“I knew tech was my goal – I’ve known it since forever,” states the Per Scholas Detroit valedictorian. Researching alternative training opportunities were “out of the question” due to their steep financial costs. But upon finding Per Scholas, Cortez was again energized to continue with pursuing his tech career aspirations.

“The opportunity to be at Per Scholas and work with the partners at TEKsystems is the most valuable educational experience I have ever had. I was not just learning tech skills – I was learning life skills, how to interview, what employers are looking for, building my customer service skills and my professional skills at the same time.”

Providing Transformative Opportunities

Nationally, 80% of Per Scholas graduates begin working in jobs that pay an average of $21/hour to start. That’s 4x times their average pre-training incomes. Commitment to creating opportunity is what drives the Per Scholas / TEKsystems partnership. Two weeks following graduation, 17 out of 20 Detroit graduates were successfully placed in tech roles by TEKsystems, and 9 out of 20 in Philadelphia, in turn strengthening the local IT talent pool and achieving greater diversity within the regions’ technology markets.

“We are looking to really provide a contribution to [these businesses and communities] by offering these types of programs and providing opportunity to people who normally would not be able to take advantage of other opportunities,” states Theresa Chin, Senior VP, Per Scholas. By expanding pathways for tech employment on the local level, benefits such as achieving a work/life balance are provided to residents like Joshua, who is a single father with a toddler son diagnosed with autism. “I needed to find a career that would support a work-life balance that would let me connect with him.”

Joshua and Cortez are just two of the hundreds of graduates Per Scholas and TEKsystems will train and prepare for cutting-edge technology jobs over the next three years. Each graduating class brings to fruition a future where overlooked individuals can access well-paying tech careers, where talent is recognized and recruited from many diverse sources, and opportunities lead to transformative lives for graduates, their families, and their communities.

“These past fifteen weeks I’ve learned alongside this awesome group of individuals,” shares Cortez. “I felt a little intimidated when I first got here — my colleagues are so awesome and smart. The best thing we had throughout all of this was each other.”

Greater Boston’s dominance in the tech world is ever-growing. It’s on a roll. Boston continues to cement its reputation as one of the country’s top tech hubs, consistently ranking among the top 10. In fact, Boston is the ninth likeliest city globally to become the “leading technology innovation hub outside of Silicon Valley over the next four years”, according to a recent KPMG annual survey of the tech industry. With a steady flow of venture capital funds, a robust talent pipeline, a vibrant start-up scene and a who’s who of major corporations and institutions with large technology departments, Greater Boston will continue to make a big impact across the tech world. Per Scholas could not be prouder to be a part of this tech hub.

We opened our doors here in Kendall Square, Cambridge this past spring, and our inaugural class recently graduated in June, with students ready to take their places in the professional world. Just three weeks post-graduation, certified students are employed at companies including Deloitte, Mass General Hospital, R.G. Vanderweil Engineers, and even our own organization Per Scholas Greater Boston (yes, we even hired one of our own grads!) earning an average of over $21/hour. Per Scholas is a 25-year-old nonprofit that started in the South Bronx. We offer tuition-free technology training to students, age 18+, who are unemployed and underemployed. We also collaborate with businesses to design industry and job-specific courses based on employers’ IT needs, evolving and reshaping courses as required. Our first customized training partner in Greater Boston is TEKsystems, a leader in Full-Stack Technology Services, Talent Services and real-world application. Led by Managing Director, Alanna Hughes, the program graduated over 20 Full-Stack Java trained developers in August. Our next class with TEKsystems launches in October. The class will focus on building Network Support skill sets, culminating in achieving Net+ and A+ certifications.

Technology doesn’t stand still, so neither do we.

10,000 Graduates and Counting

We have Per Scholas sites in 11 cities nationwide and just enrolled our 10,000th student! And we plan to go even bigger. Earlier this year, Per Scholas received funding so that by 2023, we’ll be able to serve 4,000 technology career students a year.

Opportunities for Individuals, Communities & Companies

Per Scholas is committed to creating meaningful advantages for individuals. Our students are either unemployed or underemployed, meaning they may have been able to find work but have had a difficult time establishing a career. Our objective is to train our students and enable them to move into a career pathway.

Nationwide, Per Scholas has an 85% graduation rate and an 80% placement rate for graduates, with students increasing their wages by 400%, on average, in their first tech role.

We are also about building a more diverse technical workforce at companies and throughout the technology ecosystem. Women and people of color are staggeringly underrepresented in IT employment today. In a recent EEOC study of 75 Silicon Valley companies, just 2.2% of professional-level workers were African American, and 4.4% were Hispanic, while estimates of the percentage of technical roles filled by women are as low as 15%. Meanwhile, 86% of Per Scholas students nationally are people of color and a third are women. We create onramps for underrepresented groups so that a technology career is not only in reach but attainable.

Tackling the Tech Gap & the Power of Partnership

The U.S. DOL projects the creation of nearly 500,000 new IT jobs between 2014 and 2024, making the tech sector one of the largest and fastest growing employment sectors nationally. In the Greater Boston area, between job creation and turnover, there are more than 10,000 annual tech job openings that Per Scholas graduates are qualified for. Although we’re talking about only a few hundred Per Scholas graduates per year, every little bit helps. We won’t singlehandedly close the tech gap, but we can make a dent. Which brings me to my next topic: optimizing workforce and talent development.

Our expansion into Greater Boston was made possible with generous support provided by BlackRock, The Boston Foundation, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Workforce Skills Cabinet, The Demond and Kia Martin Foundation, Salesforce.org, SkillWorks, TEKsystems and generous individual donors.

Most recently, Per Scholas Greater Boston was the latest organization selected by the GreenLight Fund Boston for a four-year $600,000 investment to expand our employment training to Boston residents and further contribute to the growing tech sector that has been witnessed within the region. This level of support from one of Boston’s most innovative social impact leaders, to invest in our mission to closing to the local tech talent gap, is critical to our expansion and inclusion in the broader Boston tech network. We are thrilled to be their 12th portfolio organization and look forward to their partnership as a thought leader and network builder. (Listen here for the radio feature including Per Scholas Greater Boston alum, Hector Miranda Vaquer).

Workforce and talent development – and more specifically, preparing employees for a future constantly redefined by technology – is best accomplished with coordination, cooperation and collaboration among the public and private sectors, along with nonprofits. No one entity or group of entities can go it alone when it comes to truly making an impact. Tapping into our combined resources, knowledge, networks and expertise, we are far better equipped to make strides in reducing the tech gap and bring about true transformation in Greater Boston which also includes changing policy, practice and perception. As we do this as part of a system, we are far better positioned to match the right people, resources, training and available opportunities. In short, we are stronger together.

While Per Scholas is new to the Greater Boston area, our stellar team brings considerable experience to this work and a desire to innovate, collaborate and create meaningful change. We bring our expertise to work for employers and businesses by providing talent development and DEI solution. And we simultaneously partner with our students to assist them in achieving their goal to enter or advance in the ever-growing tech field in our region.

Robin Nadeau, Managing Director, Per Scholas Greater Boston

You can reach Robin Nadeau at RNadeau@perscholas.org.

On October 16th, Per Scholas revealed its newly renovated headquarters in the Bronx, NY and celebrated its 25-year history with the renaming of the site as the “John Hoyt Stookey Tech Training Center” in honor of its Founder and Board Chair Emeritus, John Hoyt Stookey. Per Scholas has grown to become one of the nation’s leading workforce development organizations providing cost-free technology training to thousands of underemployed and underserved individuals. The growth of the organization was presented during the ceremony’s reveal of the Per Scholas museum which charts the organization’s history from “bridging the digital divide” as an asset recovery center that repurposed used computers for local South Bronx schools to “bridging the talent gap” within the tech industry across its eleven markets.

The ceremony gathered together Per Scholas staff and students, as well as some of the organization’s key supporters and funding partners who toured the facility and participated in various tech demos. Per Scholas President and CEO, Plinio Ayala, also acknowledged the support of the Bronx Borough President’s Office and their support within the Bronx. “With their help, we’ve grown from enrolling 50 students a year to close to 1,000 students per year.”

Two days after the ceremony, the John Hoyt Stookey Tech Training Center celebrated the graduation of its first cybersecurity cohort. For Abe Mendez, Per Scholas New York Managing Director, this will be the first of many cohorts to join the ranks of the classes that came before them at other sites, as well as alumni who have successfully established themselves within the cybersecurity field.

“We’ve had hundreds of graduates in cybersecurity working and are now thriving at companies across the United States, helping to protect companies from threats from across the cybersecurity landscape.”

Cybersecurity graduate Kristina Arnold explored a number of career options and similar education opportunities cost way too much. Because of Per Scholas, she has been able to identify a career path that is both personally ad financially rewarding. The renaming of the site recognizes the leadership and legacy that has shepherded the organization to where it is today, but its impact on those who it helped to bring out the best in will remain long-lasting.

“It is not just the training, Per Scholas provides a holistic approach, they help you as a full person. On behalf of myself and the twenty-two classmates from the Bronx’s inaugural Cybersecurity class, I want to say thank you to the funders and supporters here with us today. Because of you, we are taking the next step in our technology careers and we are able to do that because of you and because of Per Scholas.”

Per Scholas would like to thank all of the contributors who made this renovation possible:

Barclays
Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr.
Richard and Jacqueline Emmet
The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation
The Hyde and Watson Foundation
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
New York City Council, Bronx Delegation
The New York Community Trust
Pratt Institute

This past weekend was the second annual Per Scholas Columbus corn hole fundraising tournament. Close to 20 teams participated for winning this year’s trophy, including last year’s winning team and Per Scholas Champion Partner TEKsystems who came out in full force this year with three teams. Unfortunately, it was not enough to claim the throne this year as newly crowned champion State Auto took home the gold with Vernovis coming in second place.

Event keynote Speakers included Tina Lyden, a local advisory board member (pictured below) and current Per Scholas Columbus students Chays Davis-White and David Nieh. Managing Director, Toni Cunningham, led a live auction for participants to bid on incredible swag and items.

We’d like to thank our event sponsors for helping to support this year’s tournament:

• American Cornhole Organization
• Columbus Partnership
• Elysian Fiber
• HMB
• Lbrands Foundation
• TEKsystems
• Vernovis

Over $20,000 was raised from the event and will go towards furthering the mission to delivering tuition-free tech training to Columbus residents.