Over the last two years, i.c. stars Milwaukee has produced 72 graduates, which have gone on to either start their own company, get hired at a local company, or pursue a degree in
technology.
The Rise Prize was designed to raise awareness about student parents, also known as Risers, and to accelerate solutions that address their postsecondary success, economic
mobility and well-being. We received more than 300 applications from nonprofit organizations, for-profit companies and postsecondary institutions that are tackling the barriers
faced by Risers, from child care to career navigation.
In the spring of 2000, a young man walked into the Inner-City Computer Stars office in Chicago, determined to join this nonprofit’s digital skills training program and build a
future for himself in technology. But first he had to prove that he was ready for that journey.
“He was 17 or 18 years old when he applied,” recalls Sandee Kastrul, the CEO and a founder of i.c.stars. Kastrul says she asked him to “go and build a website and come back.”
So he did. “And this was back in the day, 20 years ago, so he had all these floppy disks with his code on it to show us what he had built. It was pretty incredible, and we said, ‘All
right, we’ve got to have this kid joining the cohort.’”
In the spring of 2000, a young man walked into the Inner-City Computer Stars office in Chicago, determined to join this nonprofit’s digital skills training program and build a
future for himself in technology. But first he had to prove that he was ready for that journey.
“He was 17 or 18 years old when he applied,” recalls Sandee Kastrul, the CEO and a founder of i.c.stars. Kastrul says she asked him to “go and build a website and come back.”
So he did. “And this was back in the day, 20 years ago, so he had all these floppy disks with his code on it to show us what he had built. It was pretty incredible, and we said, ‘All
right, we’ve got to have this kid joining the cohort.’”
Chicago-based nonprofit i.c.stars works in three cities to train a more diverse IT workforce. After an intensive four-month training, graduates are equipped with the technical skills and business leadership to thrive in tech-enabled jobs. Microsoft has supported i.c.stars for 20 years and remains committed to ensuring all people have the opportunity and access to the life-changing power of technology. Watch Video
Chicago mom and i.c.stars graduate, Tierra, learned the business leadership and technical skills to be hired as a cloud support specialist and become the role model her family needed.
Watch Video
When a woman of color approached a white investor about her tech start up, he handed her his plate, mistaking her for the event’s cleaning crew. This type of racism is reflective of what entrepreneurs of color face when trying to build a tech company in a predominately white business sector. Milwaukee Business Journal dives deeper into the impact that a $50 million fund for divers founders could accomplish for Milwaukee’s tech. Read Article
The business leaders of Milwaukee say that mentorship, inclusivity, and location will improve diversity in the workforce.
Sarah Dollhausen-Clark, executive director of i.c.stars Milwaukee, admits that it is hard to pin-point just one thing that can benefit Milwaukee’s lack of diversity in the workforce, as there are many that stem from the raw statistics of the minority communities. However, she offers one large critique for companies who are shifting their focus to diversifying their staff. She proceeds to offer some of her own ideas to ensure this this transformation can begin happening in Milwaukee’s workforce.
Read Article
CHICAGO – JUNE 12, 2020 – i.c.stars announced today its partnership with TechReady Illinois, an effort launched this week by P33 and Discovery Partners to help Illinois residents hurt by COVID-19 gain new digital skills.
More than one million Illinoisans filed for unemployment in the first nine weeks of the COVID-19 crisis, more than five times the same period of the Great Recession. The pandemic has further exacerbated the health and economic disparities among residents of underserved communities.
“For TechReady to advance inclusive tech growth, and to deliver tech-career opportunity to those who have historically been underrepresented in the digital economy like our Black and Latinx residents, we need partners who have a history and expertise working with these populations successfully,” said P33 Senior Vice President of Workforce Innovation Matthew Muench. “i.c.stars is a Chicago gem that […]
Two Chicago organizations that have gained attention for missions to expand and strengthen Chicago’s tech industry launched a new program to help provide inexpensive
computer science education to Illinoisans. P33, an effort by Chicago’s private-sector leaders to boost the city’s tech reputation, and the Discovery Partners Institute, a network of
research and innovation hubs in the South Loop, announced the initiative, called TechReady Illinois, on Monday.
