The “racial tech gap,” between Black students and other ethnic groups could threaten the likelihood of them landing meaningful employment, and ever closing the wealth gap in a rapidly digitizing labor market.
Scary, right?
Fortunately, Goldman Sachs Asset Management is aiming to change that. In an announcement made earlier this month, the financial titan will become a premier sponsor of the SEO (Sponsors for Educational Opportunity) Tech Developer, with a commitment of $2.25 million over the next three years. The initiative’s goal is to provide Black, Latinx, and Native American undergraduate students the resources needed to chart a linear path to a tech career right after completing their studies.
“While Tech is a high-growth industry, only 5% of tech employees at leading tech firms identify as Black, Latinx, or Native American. We launched SEO Tech Developer to address the preparation gap facing historically underrepresented students by speeding the development of the technical and soft skills required for entry-level tech roles at leading companies,” Julian Johnson, Executive Vice President, SEO said in a news release. He added, “Our goal is to ensure students have the tools they need to land top tech roles upon graduation.”
In partnership with Codio, a company that develops computer science curricula, Goldman Sachs will connect the student with industry professionals and mentors such as industry professionals, educators, and recruiters.
“At Goldman Sachs, we strongly believe that a diverse workforce is critical for business success and are committed to advancing racial equity across industries,” said Julian Salisbury, global co-head of Goldman Sachs Asset Management and SEO board member. “We are proud to support SEO in its mission to strengthen the pipeline of diverse candidates in the tech sector and positively enact change in a way that drives innovation and growth in the global economy.”
Since 2021, the program has guided 130+ sophomore computer science and engineering majors in a 12-week approach to developing skills across CSS, Flask, APIs, all highly-competitive credentials in the CS industry.
For more information about SEO Tech Developer, visit https://seo-usa.org/tech.
