December 6, 2021
CodeHouse Receives $1 Million Grant from Google.org to Support Regional Expansion
The grant allows CodeHouse to expand its initiatives to HBCU students in Washington, D.C. and North Carolina as part of its commitment to build a diverse tech workforce in the U.S.
ATLANTA, December 6, 2021 -- CodeHouse, the 501(c)(3) non-profit focused on tackling the diversity gap in the technology industry, today announced it has received a $1 million grant from Google.org, the charitable arm of Google. This groundbreaking funding will allow CodeHouse to expand its initiatives to students attending Historically Black Colleges/Universities (HBCUs) in Washington, D.C. and North Carolina over the next two years, furthering the organization’s reach while strengthening its mission to build a diverse tech workforce.
The grant also allows CodeHouse to grow the CodeHouse Scholars Initiative (CHSI), its four-year mentorship and scholarship program designed to prepare underrepresented students attending HBCUs for careers in STEM. Launched in March 2021, CHSI provides students with technical training, mentorship, scholarships, and internship opportunities as they matriculate, with support from additional leading tech companies including PayPal, the program’s founding partner, among others.
“Since CodeHouse’s founding, we’ve been able to reach thousands of students of color in the Atlanta area and equip them with the tools they need to successfully pursue careers in tech,” said Ernest Holmes, CodeHouse’s president and co-founder. “With this grant from Google.org, we’re able to take our efforts to the next level and impact the lives of thousands more. The time is now to increase diverse representation in tech, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to receive this generous funding to support us in our mission to do so.”
YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki announced the grant on Thursday, November 18 when she joined Holmes, who also happens to be a software engineer at Google, for the first installment of CodeHouse’s Conversation series. During the fireside chat, which saw attendance from more than 100 Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Spelman College students, Wojcicki discussed learnings from her journey in tech, took questions from the audience, and shared advice for rising professionals.
On Thursday, November 18, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki hosted the first installment of the CodeHouse Conversation series. During the fireside chat, she discussed learnings from her journey in tech and shared advice for rising professionals.
On Thursday, November 18, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki hosted the first installment of the CodeHouse Conversation series. During the fireside chat, she discussed learnings from her journey in tech and shared advice for rising professionals.
More than 100 students from Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Spelman College attended the live event.
Before Wojcicki announced Google.org’s $1 million grant, several students had the opportunity to ask questions about her career and hear her advice for college students interested in tech.
“The CodeHouse Conversation with Susan Wojicki was definitely one of the top highlights from my first semester in college,” said Azola Martin, a freshman computer science major at Morehouse College and CodeHouse Scholar. “To hear directly from one of the most influential executives in the industry was incredibly inspiring and really reaffirmed my decision to pursue a career in tech.”
To learn more about CodeHouse and its mission to increase diverse representation in the tech industry, visit www.thecodehouse.org.
###
Media Contact
Anna Mitchell
anna@thecodehouse.org
(443) 838-7524
About CodeHouse
CODEHOUSE is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that focuses on cultivating a strong pipeline between students of color and industry-leading technology companies. At its core, CodeHouse aims to tackle the diversity gap in technology by providing exposure and resources to enhance students’ technical skills, promoting internship/full-time placement, and elevating the next generation of diverse leaders in technology.
About Google.org
Google.org, Google’s philanthropy, brings the best of Google to help solve some of humanity’s biggest challenges combining funding, innovation, and technical expertise to support underserved communities and provide opportunity for everyone. We engage nonprofits and social enterprises who make a significant impact on the communities they represent, and whose work has the potential to produce meaningful change. We want a better world, faster — and we believe in leveraging technology and applying scalable data-driven innovation to move the needle.