Per Skoras trains people in disadvantaged areas for technical jobs.
I remember going on a quick getaway to New York to celebrate my partner’s 40th birthday in March and seeing Per Scholas signs as we walked through Times Square and midtown Manhattan. The company’s website boasts that its work “unleashes potential and changes the face of technology.” Additionally, Per Scholas says that for a quarter century, through its “exclusive network” of donors, funders, and partners, “more than 25,000 Per Scholas alumni have empowered themselves to unlock their potential through rigorous training for technology careers.” Per Scholas alumni have worked in fields such as web development, IT support, software engineering, and cybersecurity.
In an interview conducted by video conference in early April, Brittany Murray, executive vice president of talent solutions at Per Schoulus, said the company is a national nonprofit focused on “increasing economic equality and mobility” by providing tuition-free tech training.[preparing] “It prepares learners for their next job or future career in the technology industry.” She said the course is primarily targeted at individuals who have “historically been underrepresented in the technology field,” such as people with disabilities.
“Improved representation and [in tech] “At the same time, it improves economic equality between these groups,” Murray said of the opportunity Per Skolas will have to serve.[It] When it comes to economic equality, it tends to be women, people of color, and others who can create employment barriers.”
For Marie, whose background is in business development, employer engagement, and workforce development, her role at Per Scholas dates back to her time in graduate school at the University of Southern California, where she focused on social entrepreneurship, trying to find “more elements of social impact that could help perfect the capitalist structure in this country.” A big part of this, Marie told me, was working with nonprofits that support career paths for people who have historically been excluded from access to economic mobility. Marie ended up working for an organization that helps develop career paths for marginalized and underrepresented groups, which dovetails with her own values. Prior to joining Per Scholas, Marie worked at Employment Opportunity Centers, which she described as “located all over the country.” [that] “We support the career pathways of people who have been incarcerated or have been formerly convicted.” Her role at Per Scholas is similar in concept, with Murrey now leading the company’s employer engagement strategy and implementation.
When asked what Per Scholas actually does for people, Murray said the organization asks candidates to go through a “rigorous” application process to determine which career field is best suited for them. Tuition-free training is offered in 22 cities across the U.S., and Murray told me that distance learning options are also “gradually ramping up.” She added that the proverbial flip side is that Per Scholas serves as a resource for prospective employers to scout for talent. “We partner with major employers to build a more diverse talent pool,” Murray said. “We connect our graduates directly to new career opportunities everywhere from industry-leading Fortune 500 companies to innovative startups.”
Murray said technology is becoming more and more “pervasive and ubiquitous in society.” As such, organizations across industries are always looking for talented technologists, she explained. That’s because we live in a technology-dominated era. Today, almost everything people do has some technological component to it, but Murray said that’s only going to accelerate in the future, so it makes more sense to “view technology as a capability.” [instead of] “Industry or Sector.” In other words, human life and technology are inextricably linked, for better or worse. (As an aside, this also explains why my coverage in this column has become so varied: accessibility, especially for people with disabilities, is everywhere.)
“we, [tech] “Work lasts forever,” Murray said. “At more than 20 campuses across the country, people from all walks of life and backgrounds can get trained, graduate, earn qualifications and certifications and launch careers in technical jobs and industries, from healthcare and financial services to logistics and skilled trades — faster than they could with a four-year degree.”
On that last point, Murray was quick to assure us that Per Schoulras’ work is based on skills-based hiring, meaning “we look at the skills, experience and ability of the person doing the job, and not so much at whether they’ve got a traditional four-year university degree,” he said.
Murray reiterated Per Scholas’ mission to “unleash the potential” of underserved communities who face barriers to entry when it comes to working in the technology industry. He added that the initiative also has the by-product of strengthening the economy by increasing the workforce. Additionally, Murray cited some statistics, saying that Per Scholas graduates earn three times the salary they did before their training. Additionally, 87% identify as people of color and more than 40% identify as women. Two-thirds have a high school diploma or GED.
“We train and develop the skills of incredibly diverse individuals who come from many different intersections that present barriers in the tech industry,” Murray said. “Diverse talent pays off.”
She continued, “We are training these technicians and have now expanded to over 20 cities across the country. We are really focused on the individual, but we also facilitate the impact of the individual by explaining and highlighting the economic perspective on companies and businesses.”
In terms of employers, Murray reiterated her earlier statement about a wide range of companies from Fortune 500 companies to small startups, saying there are “over 850” that use Per Scholas. Given that number, she said, it’s fair to say Per Scholas is a “subject matter expert” in the field. While the majority of companies looking to hire seek out Per Scholas’ expertise, Murray said they don’t have a formal strategy articulated to them, nor are they obligated to “go to market.” Rather, as they elevate their brand and tell their story, she said, Per Scholas often finds companies that come to us because they “want to engage with this talent pool and want access to this resource of high-quality tech talent.” Murray went on to say that these potential employers recognize the “inherent value” of that pipeline, as well as the extensive support system Per Scholas provides to its graduates and alumni.
Looking to the future, Murray boasted that Per Scholas has achieved a milestone: the company has trained 25,000 people as engineers. Murray said that’s a “hugely significant” figure, given how many communities and families have been affected by the repercussions. That said, Murray and his team recognize how “volatile” and “constantly changing” the tech industry is, and as the industry moves at quantum speed, they strive to ensure that Per Scholas’ programs and curriculum stay relevant and up-to-date. They achieve this by working with partners and alumni to keep things fresh and interesting for students.
Despite the constant change, Per Scholas is encouraged by its long-term outlook. Murray said that given that executives are prioritizing technological know-how, “we’re seeing more and more of a market where we’re working with employers to help them resize and upskill their current workforce.”
“Offering in-demand technology skills and training programs such as cloud, cybersecurity and data engineering gives our learners, graduates and alumni a competitive advantage in the marketplace,” says Murray. “We design these programs in collaboration with industry experts to ensure that our graduates have the skills that employers are actually looking for. One thing we get asked a lot is how to train the people that employers are actually looking for. Per Skolas really gets it in the way he approaches his curriculum and how he rolls out his programs across the country to reach people who otherwise don’t have access to these types of careers.”
In a broader sense, Marie’s work at Per Scholas aligns well with what I posted here this week. The work being done by Comcast, NBCUniversal, and 2Geether International is especially relevant because both Dalila Wilson-Scott and Diego Mariscal are committed to increasing opportunities for people with disabilities to succeed as entrepreneurs and technologists. As both Wilson-Scott and Mariscal told me, the disability community is rich with resources that companies can tap into.
