Project Description
CHICAGO
We provide the training and tools to jumpstart a life-long profession.
ABOUT CHICAGO
Since 1999, i.c.stars has been identifying, training, and jump-starting technology careers for Chicago-area low-income young adults who, although lacking access to education and employment, demonstrate extraordinary potential for success in the business world and for impact in their communities.
OUR SUCCESS
i.c.stars works with a variety of partners in Chicago, including community based organizations such as Metropolitan Family Services, CPS – Office of Alternative Education, Austin Coming Together, Goodwill Englewood, and Juvenile Justice Center. Anchored in the tech industry, additional partners include Women Tech Founders, Black Tech Mecca, ARA (Attract Retain Advance Women in Technology), Chicago Innovation Awards, and corporate partners such as Accenture, Paylocity, CIBC, Salesforce among many others.
An i.c.stars Chicago graduate who works as a senior automation engineer at a Fortune 100 company described his i.c.stars experience as the reason for where he is today. “I’m going to VMWorld next week to present an open source PowerShell module. That would not have been possible without [i.c.stars project sponsor] TTX – the rigorous project not only required us to write our own database but also to write our own server side scripts as well as the front end stuff. My career in infrastructure is primarily because of that project.”
Learn to code. Launch a career.
We provide the training and tools to jumpstart a life-long profession.
Two year program begins with intensive, 16-week paid internship
Project-based learning builds leadership skills and emotional intelligence
Core technical skills training in Javascript, HTML, CSS, C#, Asp.net Core and SQL
Develop software. Develop yourself.
Grow leadership and teamwork skills while working with tech industry leaders.
We’re more than tech support. We support your dreams.
We wrap you with two years of support and coaching to achieve your goals.
Help Us Recruit
Download our Flyer to post or share with the talented young adults in your life.
READY TO LEARN MORE?
Read about our minimum Program Requirements or schedule an Information Session to start your journey. You may also complete our General Inquiry Form and we will contact you about joining i.c.stars.
EVENTS
Join us as CIOs, sponsors, and alumni take center stage for i.c.stars’ largest fundraising and networking event of the year!
PAST EVENTS
Hack the Dream is a social impact hack-a-thon that celebrates the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, by bringing together technology and community organizations.
Come celebrate 20 years of i.c.stars with drinks, dancing and a one-of-a kind silent auction. Join i.c.stars board members, alumni, staff and supporters who have empowered us to code the future; creating jobs, leaders, and social justice in Chicago for two decades.
Looking for ways to get involved? Check out our Get Engaged page for more information on volunteering!
CHICAGO SPONSORS
