The Next-Gen Tech Talent Pipeline

America On Tech [AOT] is creating pathways  into degrees and careers in technology for underestimated young people. 

Digital equity is a social, racial, and economic justice issue, as evidenced by the persistent absence of representation within the tech sector, particularly among Black/Latinx communities. According to the National Skills Coalition, regardless of industry, 92% of today’s jobs require digital skills. Yet, only a small percentage of Black [9%] and Latinx [10%] students earn degrees in tech fields, and technology employees of color make up a small fraction of the high-tech workforce [Black-7% and Latinx-8%]. 

These statistics underscore the critical importance of digital equity, which extends far beyond mere access to technology. The expanding digital divide not only affects the material quality of individuals’ lives but also holds sweeping implications to the health and existence of American democracy. 

There are myriad obstacles that hinder underestimated young people  from accessing opportunities for economic advancement and career success. This disparity is perpetuated by an educational system that systematically reinforces unequal access. In the context of technology education, early racial, gender, and socioeconomic gaps in access to STEM education in Pre-12th grade limit the opportunities that all children have to engage meaningfully with technology, develop computational skills, and explore careers in computer science. Often, when underestimated students  do encounter STEM learning, retention can be a challenge due to a lack of social and cultural relevance to both the development and deployment of curricula. 

Further, significant barriers exist for underestimated students to gain access to tech careers, including:

• High-poverty schools with 12x less computer science courses than low-poverty schools

• Almost ¼ of Black students do not have access to computers or high-speed internet at home

• Cost-prohibitive access to coding camps with average cost of $13k

Additionally, young technologists face systemic obstacles within the workplace, with employers reporting difficulty in identifying and retaining diverse talent, without auditing contributing factors such as:

• Relying on referrals from current employees, which can reinforce the network effects in hiring.

• Recruiting bias, including around race, gender, education/work background, geography.

• Lack of existing diversity within companies, leading to further perpetuation of biased hiring practices, while also leaving young talent with limited access to mentorship, networking, and other career advancement opportunities.

AOT’s theory of change is that everyone should have the opportunity to compete fairly for the opportunities of today’s technology-driven workforce, particularly underestimated students who are historically excluded from the tech sector equation. When we think about the young people we serve, we know that when given the resources to succeed, they thrive and not only create promising career pathways for themselves, but for others in their communities. In this way, AOT seeks to foster systemic change by increasing the presence of underestimated communities in high income tech careers through technology education. 

AOT has established a program model that creates a pipeline of highly trained underestimated students to enter and change the face of the tech sector. This innovative approach addresses the root causes of disparities in tech education and employment, and includes a range of initiatives tailored to meet students at various stages of their journey towards success.

Programs include:

TECH360 – a three-week summer intensive for rising high school juniors and seniors during which they learn the fundamentals of web design and development and create a functional web application.

TECH FLEX LEADERS – a year-long Out of School Time program for juniors and seniors. During the first semester, students learn how to code through web development, mastering tech programs such as HTML, CSS, and Bootstrap. In the second semester, students choose a tech track [UX Design, Product Management, Digital Marketing Data Science, or Advanced Web Development] to gain an additional technology skillset they can leverage when pursuing future tech opportunities.

ACCESS TECH – a series of initiatives that focus on internships and employment outcomes for alumni of AOT programs: including a summer internship program, job placements and other career readiness opportunities.

ALUMNI TECHNOLOGY SKILLS FELLOWSHIPS – aims to give college students who are interested in pursuing a technology career the opportunity to gain additional training that prepares them for opportunities in their desired field.

All AOT programs are free of cost to our students. Further, graduating students receive stipends [$500-$1,000]. These financial incentives are an equitable programmatic component to ensure participation and retention by young people who might otherwise not be able to participate in AOT, while simultaneously acknowledging the value of student’s investment in their education. In 2023, we disseminated over $853,735 in stipends to program participants.  Students are also provided with a laptop as needed. 

AOT programs are structured to close the digital divide and disrupt cycles of poverty; put students towards a path to economic empowerment; create schools that have high quality tech education; advance social emotional learning outcomes and multiple career pathways for young people; and go beyond education to ensure that underestimated students are positioned for success. Each of these components serves to build a healthier and more vibrant democracy, and more equitable civic systems.

AOT envisions a world where young people have equitable access to digital skills learning to be able to compete fairly for opportunities in the tech sector, and the workforce more broadly. To achieve this, AOT retools the educational status quo by transforming the educational experience and creating employment pathways for students who are historically excluded and underestimated. AOT’s pipeline engages students at critical educational and skills engagement stages [ages 16-24] through STEM-based and career readiness activities, and supports their growth as they secure paid internships, full-time employment, or pursue post-secondary education. Our model is industry aligned, vetted and project based, and curricula incorporate a culturally relevant intersectional professional development approach, where underestimated students learn about tech career readiness in a way that is tied to their social identities and the complex dynamics they will navigate in work spaces where dominant cultures exist and persist.

AOT recruits students from charter and public high schools in where at least 70% of the population is eligible for free/reduced lunch and makes exceptions for underestimated students where the school is still listed as Title 1. The median household income for our students in NYC, LA and Miami is $38K, $45K, and $40K, respectively. The majority of our students are Black [43%], Latinx [43%], and AAPI [13%]. 57% of our students identify as women/non-binary.

 Additionally, many experience:

▪          Living in the poorest congressional districts.

▪          Choosing between an after-school job and participating in a technical training program.

▪          High levels of economic stress due to parents’ lack of/or limited employment.

▪          Identifying as "disconnected youth.”

▪          Unreliable Wi-Fi at home and in the communities where they live. 

▪          A lack of industry exposure or access to tech opportunities.

In 2024, AOT will provide technology skills and workforce readiness programs to 1,200 students of color in NYC, LA, and Miami.

AOT was founded in 2014 by Jessica Santana and Evin Floyd Robinson - both people of color (Afro-Latinx and Black, respectively), graduates of the NYC public schools and first-generation college grads. While Jessica and Evin were employed in the tech sector (Accenture, Deloitte, JP Morgan Chase), they quickly noticed there were very few other people who looked like them or shared similar lived experiences. They understood that something had to be done to begin to systematically change the face of the industry. With this, AOT was born, and today, the team now serves “the students they once were.”

AOT recognizes that underestimated students  are often not given a seat at the table to help self-determine the programs and services they require to succeed in life. Since AOT’s inception, building a diverse team that reflects the students we serve has always been a priority. Seventy-five percent [75%] of AOT’s leadership team is Black or Latinx and 75% of staff are BIPOC [60% are Black or Latinx]. Half of AOT’s staff leadership identify as women; 68% of the staff identify as women. AOT’s board of directors consists of 15 members who are 53% BIPOC [47% are Black or Latinx] and 53% women. Of the board’s executive committee, 75% are women and 50% are Black, including the board chair who is a Black woman. Recognizing the profound impact of representation in the classroom, AOT priorities hiring instructors of color to lead our programs. Additionally, we empower our students by employing AOT graduates as paid peer mentors, ensuring there are role models and mentors in the classroom who share similar lived experiences.

Furthermore, AOT collaborates with 3 types of partners, each contributing unique expertise and resources:

Recruitment Partners (300+ high schools and CBOs) facilitate student recruitment for AOT programs, serving as community anchors and helping AOT reach a broader audience of eligible students.

Training Partners (50+ tech companies including FactSet, Anteriad, NBCUniversal, Capital One, Deutsche Bank, Meta, Amazon, TikTok, Snap, Accenture) provide volunteers to act as mentors and host career days, mock interviewing and resume writing workshops, lead guest lectures and judge student final presentations. They also provide pro bono space for in-person programming. 

Employment Partners (80+ tech companies including Anteriad, Accenture, NBCUniversal, AWS) serve as internship hosts for students to participate in work-based learning opportunities.  They help design summer projects for interns and employees attend internship partner training. 

We are not just scaling a program model we believe in and know to be effective, but are adapting it to the ever-changing needs of the communities we engage. We balance community needs over efficiency – listening to the voices of young people, their families and educators to make sure our work is timely and culturally relevant. 

AOT programs focus on in-demand tech skills such as Web Development, UX Design, Product Management, Digital Marketing, Data Science, and Cyber Security. Incorporated into our program model are professional development, mentorship, resume building, interview prep, exposure to hiring managers, and internship/job placements. Additionally, our commitment to staying ahead of industry trends is reflected in our ongoing curriculum audits, ensuring that we equip students not only for current job opportunities but also for emerging fields and roles in the ever-changing tech landscape.

The context of the communities we serve and how AOT responds continually evolves.  For example, at their request, we introduced stipend technology skills development fellowships for our alumni to support enhanced skills development.  And recognizing the need of BIPOC youth beyond New York City, AOT has replicated non-tuition, stipend-based programs to Los Angeles in 2019 and to Miami in 2022.

Since its founding in 2014, AOT has:

• Expanded and established it’s program pipeline in three major US cities (NYC [2014]; Los Angeles [2019] and Miami [2022]

• Served 5,000+ underestimated students of color across the country

• Placed 276 interns in 2023 earning $1.5M

• Hired 120+ alumni as AOT peer mentors

• Partnered with 360+ high schools, 100+ tech companies and 1,000+ volunteers.

• 85% of AOT graduates have been accepted into college computer science/technology programs or have obtained a career in the field.

• The tech sector jobs made available to these AOT alumni come with an average salary of $132,930 [software developers], compared with the U.S. average wage of $61,900.

As AOT celebrates a decade of program delivery, the organization is at an exciting inflection point in its strategic trajectory that would greatly benefit from the resources of the Solve network. Specifically, we are currently working with the Robin Hood Foundation to develop our next three year strategic-plan that will run from 2024-27. AOT will leverage current and new partners within our network to implement our next phase of expansion and operations. Among the developing goals for the next strategic plan:

• Expand AOT curriculum to include new, emerging, and additional fast growing technologies including generative AI, cybersecurity, block-chain, and gaming, with additional focus on sectors such as legal, healthcare, and media. 

• Strengthen our hybrid model to optimize learning outcomes and bolster employment prospects, while harnessing longitudinal data to track and support the ongoing success of our expanding alumni network 

• Establish robust earned revenue partnerships to diversify our revenue streams, enhance our sustainability, and bolster our like-minded partnerships

Additionally, AOT welcomes support from the Solve network on the following: 

Professional Development Partnerships: These sessions focus on professional development topics that assist students to prepare for internships and could be facilitated by leaders within the Solve network. This can be hosted in-person or virtually. 

Micro Projects: High-level micro projects that could be collaborated on with members of the Solve network include Process Documentation, Website Analysis Enhancement and Communication /Outreach Strategies.

Skills-based Volunteering: AOT has partnered with several companies to engage their employees in more strategic, pro-bono initiatives to provide insight into our organization's overall strategy. Some have helped us brainstorm marketing ideas, expansion tactics and overall governance advice. The timeframe on these opportunities would depend on the availability of pro-bono Solve support.

How AOT Improves on Existing Efforts: There are many non-profit programs focused on diversifying the technology talent pipeline, but they are mostly known for their direct services. AOT is providing students  with tech-enabled solutions to succeed academically and in the workforce. We do not just work with high school students, but continue to provide support through internships and alumni programming to ensure their success in college and careers . We are focused on the 16–24-year-old pipeline, as we know it takes more than just a training program for students to succeed. 

Further, there are organizations that strictly operate fee-for-service curriculum platforms – some with costs as high as $15,000. We see a disconnect in the cultural relevance in the marketing of these platforms to underestimated BIPOC students. All AOT programs come at no cost to our students and their families and participants are provided stipends [$500/$1,000] upon completion of our programs.

Organization Uniqueness: What makes AOT particularly innovative in the tech skills development sector are its co-founders. As people of color, graduates of the public-school system and with professional careers in global tech companies, they realized there was a systemic disconnect between underestimated BIPOC students and opportunities for technology careers.

Other factors that make AOT unique include:

▪          Programs are tuition free and stipended.

▪        Curriculum is diverse, aligned with industry standards, and taught by tech professionals who represent the same life/academic experiences as our students.

▪          Students create robust technology projects.

▪          Students are provided with computers free of cost to them.

▪          Curriculum is complemented with professional/soft-skills development.

Further, AOT has added affinity groups to our programs that provides people of similar racial identities spaces to discuss their lived experiences and support their goals as future technologists – aligning with our vision of all students having equitable access to compete fairly for careers in tech.

AOT’s theory of change is that everyone should have the opportunity to compete fairly for the opportunities of today’s technology-driven workforce, particularly underestimated students who are historically excluded from the tech sector equation. When we think about the young people we serve, we know that when given the resources to succeed, they thrive and not only create promising career pathways for themselves, but for others in their communities. In this way, AOT seeks to foster systemic change by increasing the presence of underestimated communities in high income tech careers through technology education.

AOT evaluates achieving the programmatic goals through the following evaluation process:

AOT's Data Manager and Salesforce Administrator is responsible for synthesizing and reporting out all program outcomes and student data, which is collected through the following mechanisms:

• AOT program staff will collect and maintain data on attendance, assessments, project completion, program completion, and other relevant information within AOT's internal Salesforce systems and in Google. 

• A pre- and post-program survey will be given to program participants and will be administered via Google Forms. These surveys will assess perceived changes in knowledge and skills among participants.

• Algohythym's Hello Insight survey tool will be used to measure Social Emotional Learning impact. Hello Insight survey tool uses predictive and prescriptive analytics to target recommendations for program design based on student need, and provides real-time data and outcomes analysis. Data will be collected through a pre- and post-program evaluation and summarized in final reports.

• An alumni survey will be collected once per year to measure the program's long-term impact on participants' career and educational paths.

The program data is regularly analyzed by the National Program Director and Regional Program Directors to inform programmatic decisions and improvements.

Additionally, program outcomes, research reports, and findings will be disseminated through annual reports, grant/funder reports, AOT’s website/newsletter/social media and through academic publications when applicable.

During the 2023-24 program year, AOT will further innovate its program continuum as follows:

New York City

• Increase enrollment to 625 students [250 TECH360; 250 Tech Flex Leaders, and 125 Alumni Fellowship].

• Place 250 students in internships and/or work-based learning experiences.

• Hire 28 AOT alums as teaching assistants and peer mentors.

Los Angeles

• Increase enrollment to 400 students [200 TECH360; and 200 Tech Flex Leaders].

• Place 50 students in internships and/or work-based learning experiences.

• Hire 20 AOT alums as teaching assistants and peer mentors.

Miami

• Increase enrollment to 200 students [100TECH360 cohorts; and 100 Tech Flex Leaders].

• Place 30 students in internships and/or work-based learning experiences.

• Hire 12 AOT alums as teaching assistants and peer mentors.

Student short-term outcomes across NYC/Los Angeles/Miami programs will include at least 80%:

• graduate from our programs with a portfolio of projects. 

• report an increased understanding of skills taught. 

• be more interested in learning about degrees/careers in technology.

• feel more prepared to pursue a degree/career in technology. 

Student medium-term outcome is that 85% of students will have been accepted into college computer science/technology programs or have obtained a career in technology. 

We utilize the Hello Insight survey tool to measure Social Emotional Learning impact. Hello Insight survey tool uses predictive and prescriptive analytics to target recommendations for program design based on student need, and provides real-time data and outcomes analysis. 

Overall, 82% of students are developing SEL, “succeeding,” as the TFL program is supporting them on a long-term journey towards thriving, improved academic performance, stronger health and wellness, and college and career readiness.

AOT supports the development and training of students in web development technologies, data analytics, UX design, product management, and cyber security. Students are learning coding languages and frameworks including HTML, CSS, Bootstrap, JavaScript (arrays, APIs, functions), Figma, Python, Jupyter Notebooks, and SQL.

The program utilizes Google Classroom and Repl.i to store all class materials and curriculums and teaches classes via Zoom.

America On Tech has a staff of 21 full-time members, and roughly 50 contractors (Program Instructors and Peer Mentors across regions).

Since 2014 (ten years).

Since the inception of the organization, building a diverse team has always been a priority for Jessica and Evin. 75% of AOT’s leadership team is Black or Latinx, 75% of staff are people of color [50% are Black or Latinx]. More than half of AOT’s staff leadership is female; 63% of the staff is female. Nearly 60% of board members are people of color [50% are Black or Latinx] and 50% are female.

To enhance AOT’s inclusive workplace and promote cultural competency, we host mandatory DEI training for staff and board members, team movie and reading activities focused on race and systematic inequality, company town halls focused on current events, and facilitation of professional development workshops via external opportunities for staff.  

Additionally, AOT further demonstrates an inclusive workplace by bringing back program alumni in paid positions to help train and mentor the next generation of youth technologists. To date, we have hired more than 100 alums. We have also established an Alumni Council to provide AOT graduates with an opportunity to return to the organization in a leadership capacity to ensure the continued success of our programs on behalf of their peers coming up behind them.  

Emerging out of the social justice responses to the death of George Floyd, AOT began creating spaces for our students to reflect on how their racial identities impact their experiences as young tech professionals navigating predominantly white and white supremacy-affirming spaces. 

AOT has established a program model across three metropolitan areas [New York City, Los Angeles, and Miami], which creates a pipeline of highly trained low-income, BIPOC students to enter and change the face of the tech sector. Engagement begins with rising high school juniors and seniors from charter and public high schools where at least 75% of the population is eligible for free/reduced lunch and makes exceptions for students where the school is still Title 1. 

The programs include:

TECH360 is a three-week program intensive for rising high school juniors and seniors that teaches the fundamentals of web design and development. 

TECH FLEX LEADERS a year-long program on developing tech skills through web development, and an additional tech track  [UX Design, Product Management, Digital Marketing, Data Science, or Advanced Web Development] to gain additional skills.  Students engage in professional development and are placed in internships. 

ACCESS TECH is a series of initiatives that focus on the college and career readiness pathways of AOT alumni [including those in college] in the workplace. 

ALUMNI TECHNOLOGY SKILLS FELLOWSHIPS provide opportunities for AOT alumni to prepare for the workforce by learning about different career pathways within technology beyond computer science and IT design.

The AOT programs to be supported and scaled via MIT SOLVE will continue beyond the grant period.

To support program sustainability AOT will:

• Further cultivate existing and prospective relationships with private and corporate foundations.

• Cultivate support from corporate sponsors and individual donors.

• Increase revenues from special events.

• Refine our annual appeal process.

• Broaden Board giving and fundraising from external sources.

• Explore income generation such as through the sales of embedding our program model and curriculum in schools and nonprofits in need of tech programs.

AOT also maintains staff and programmatic sustainability by keeping a diverse mix of revenue: Corporate & Foundation Grants (76%); Corporate Partnerships (10%); Events and Individual Giving (8%); and Earned Revenue (5%).  

Along with AOT’s National Board, NYC and LA Regional Advisory Boards have been established and are integral to offering connections to local and regional resources, colleagues and/or internships; and providing philanthropic support or other forms of needed assistance.

Funding Sources for 2024 to date include, but are not limited to: 

• New Profit: $375,000 ($1,500,000 FY24-FY28)

• Factset: $300,000 ($910,000 FY23-FY25)

• NBCUniversal: $300,000 ($800,000 FY24-FY25)

• Robin Hood Foundation: $300,000 ($600,000 FY24 - FY25)

• NBA Foundation: $200,000 ($400,000 FY23-FY24)

• Salesforce Foundation: $200,000 

• W.M Keck Foundation: $150,000 ($300,000 FY23-FY24)

• Charles Hayden Foundation: $100,000 ($350,000 FY22 - FY24)

• New York Community Trust: $115,000 ($230,000 FY23 - FY24)

• Pinkerton Foundation: $150,000 (FY24)

• Booth Ferris Foundation: $90,000 ($180,000 FY23 - FY24)

• Kohlberg & Company: $75,000

• Tech Equity Collective Impact Fund: $50,000

• Altman Foundation: $50,000 ($100,000 FY24-FY25)

• Brooklyn Organization (FKA Brooklyn Community Foundation): $45,000

• Ahmanson Foundation: $27,500

• Scotch Porter: $25,000

• Accenture: $22,500

• TikTok: $15,000

• SES: $10,000