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is proud of our 20-year experience as a launchpad for small and emerging businesses everywhere to stand out and achieve. Marcy Lab School Marcy Lab School is a nonprofit organization located in Brooklyn, New York, which aims to offer students with an outstanding post-secondary that will help to guide under-appreciated teens into lucrative and fulfilled career paths in the technology sector.
We gave $100,000 to the Marcy Lab School as a part of our 2020 pledge to support organizations working toward reducing racial inequities.
We had a conversation with the Marcy Lab School's executive director Reuben Ogbonna II, about how the organization is creating opportunities for Fellows to realize their full potential and land careers in tech and other fields, with or without a diploma.
: Marcy Lab is a fairly new organization, why have you decided to establish the nonprofit?
Reuben Ogbonna II: After spending 14 years serving students of color--along with my co-founder Maya Bhattacharjee-Marcantonio--in the charter and public school systems, we repeatedly watched as our former students with limitless potential slipped through the cracks of higher education. What doesn't get told about college in America is that each year, hundreds of hard-working, highly promising students get accepted to the college of their dreams but not be able to the tuition or stay in school until the point of. We were astonished by the pervasive failing "college promises" which left our college students and their families with life-altering debt and other seemingly insurmountable obstacles.
In 2019, we formed and now lead Marcy Lab out of the belief that young people who are of color, and in fact every young adults, should have the opportunity to have a more fair, equitable pathway to the freedoms and opportunities that used to be only accessible for those who had completed a four-year college. The Marcy Lab School offers a alternative to postsecondary education that has been reimagined and rooted in our founding purpose of providing lifelong economic opportunities and mobility for youngsters who want to pursue the life-changing professions of tech.
SQSP is described as an alternative to a college degree for its fellows. It is vital to you to know that The Marcy Lab offers this route to a job?
ROThe issues I observed my students face firsthand were one of the biggest barriers for children who are of colour. It became clear that our system of postsecondary education did not live up to the promises of college the majority of young people are looking for such as community, support in academics, and the ability to align with not just an occupation but also a future. It's the conscious mixture of these components which form the basis of Marcy Lab and are some of the most important elements which give students the confidence to choose the path that isn't traditional.
In order to fulfill our fresh promise, we guarantee that our Fellows will be ready for work following the 12-month course, and are equipped with the skills to embed their skills into fast-paced teams that add value on day one. They acquire the technical knowledge through an industry-aligned, well-informed program that is flexible and responsive to the ever-changing technological demands. And alongside building a strong technical background, our fellows take part in the Leadership & Development curriculum, that focuses on racial identity and gender equality, as well as professional readiness, and the importance of financial literacy. This is done through the works of renowned authors such as James Baldwin, Michelle Alexander, Safiya Umoja Noble, and the late Dr. Beverly Tatum.
We're very proud to report that The Marcy Lab School graduates are seeking and landing high-paying jobs typically reserved for college graduates who have attended competitive four-year universities. The impact here is twofold: Not only are our Fellows and their families pushed into positions of economic security, it also shows the way in which companies are radically altering their hiring methods to attract, encourage, and keep the non-traditional workforce.
SQSP: Can you tell us more about the effect you've witnessed The Marcy Lab School have on its fellows during and after the course?
RO:Even after five years of doing this work, it is obvious to me how revolutionary it is watching our youngsters take up positions with an average annual earnings between 19 and 20 at some of the most competitive companies in the world and with no credit card debt. They're contributing to teams in companies such as The New York Times, JPMorgan, Cockroach Labs, Spotify and many more, increasing their earning potential at a rate of nearly $75,000 over the course of a year and enabling them to invest back into the local community by purchasing houses, helping their families' businesses, and supporting their families.
Even before our Fellows begin their journey into the business We watch them grow, change and blossom as individuals, striving further than ever before in order to realize their ambitions and gaining confidence to believe that they add value in every space they step into. Each day, they are more enthused and eager to make change beyond the boundaries of Marcy and, ultimately, their workplaces. They work alongside their instructors as well as with their fellow classmates that they stay grounded in the reality that their talents, skills and abilities will enable them to dismantle the systems that have been a source of inequality for centuries through their experience and their education to design tools for the social good as well as for changes in society.
SQSP: What part does tech play in the successful operation of the Marcy Lab program and its fellows--both as subject matter and also in directing the program?
ROOur technological curriculum's effectiveness depends on our close relationship with our partners from the employer side to create consistent feedback loops around our Fellows' technical and work-ready. Relevant areas for improvement go right back to our instruction teams to ensure that our content can evolve and change according to the needs of hiring and on-the-job performance.
This alignment in the curriculum and performance of students has led to new hiring partnerships with companies which recognize the fact that tight connections can lead to better or more equal hiring results. Some highlights include:
Directly working with established firms to eliminate degree requirements for software engineers, including The New York Times and . They have also hired our Fellows along with other talents that aren't conventional.
The development of a brand new Capstone course of study together with J.P. Morgan Chase Asset and Wealth Management who is a specialist in backend data engineering course for our capstone phase to address their requirements as well as prepare our Fellows for the constantly growing increase in data analytics.
SQSP What do you hope about the future of Marcy Lab School?
ROWhat is making me feel optimistic regarding the future of Marcy Lab and the potential of the space that we work in is the changes happening within the corporate world with companies shifting away from the requirement of degrees in favor of hiring on the basis of skills which has unlocked the potential of organizations such as Marcy Lab to even exist.
I have noticed major employers throughout the nation such as IBM and Barclays to major partners such as that, which have a substantial number of early career, mid-level, and senior leaders that are graduates of The Marcy Lab School, similar to Stanford's pipeline for companies in San Francisco's Bay Area. And after gaining knowledge and experience at these top businesses, I am seeing our students eventually launching their own businesses and starting their own business and transferring their knowledge by hiring teams with similar backgrounds as they had.
In the end, I consider Marcy Lab as a part in a broader network of pathways for equitable development designed specifically to help propel thousands of highly-achieving students from communities of color to careers that will break cycles of poverty in just one generation.
SQSP: How can individuals who are interested in Marcy Lab School's mission become involved?
ROIf our mission, vision and work resonate with you We encourage you to become a part of our growing community. We hope we'll continue to inspire others as we join the movement! We frequently share three options for new folks to get involved:
Go to our Brooklyn campus in Industry City and meet first-hand the children and teens who work tirelessly to achieve their ambitions and the impressive team that moves everything up.
Donate to give your time, and share your expertise to our Fellows as they navigate the rigorous requirements of our program for one year to prepare them for the job hunt, and beyond. The community of volunteers serves as tutors, curriculum advisers, guest lecturers, and recruitment partners and is crucial to our program, helping keep our curriculum industry-oriented and ensuring the success of each of our Fellows.
In the end, donating to our cause allows us to continue this program free of tuition for our Fellows.