PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Joel Wilson is hacking the diversity issues in STEM fields by creating a pipeline to success.
His nonprofit, TechCore2, was founded in 2015 and has since helped hundreds of kids in and around all corners of Philadelphia. The organization teaches coding, robotics and other programs to students from kindergarten all the way through high school — a pipeline.
“So once the students hit college, we hire them as instructors. And then once they finish college, we help to get them into careers,” said Wilson.
He believes STEM can be a path to equity and a solution to poverty.
“If we give our kids in West Philly and North Philly and Southwest the same opportunities, the same outlooks that those young folks in Lower Merion and Bala Cynwyd have, the end results would be no different,” he said. “Our kids do bring a level of confidence, of competitiveness, so when we can mirror that with that educational foundation, they will become unstoppable.”
Related
TechCore2 also provides a a remedy to the ongoing gun violence crisis by giving youth mentorship and a recreational outlet. The organization recently received a $50,000 grant from Gov. Tom Wolf as part of a larger violence and intervention program.
Wilson is currently offering free Saturday classes in University City. Without the grant, the classes would have cost $150 per student.
“We’re offering nine different classes — classes on a programming language called Scratch, another one on JavaScript, a Lego Mindstorms robotics class, and we have several gaming classes. All those classes are totally free. And then in the summertime, we’re going to be doing our summer internship again with high school students,” he said.
Related
TechCore2 is currently recruiting for summer programs. Wilson hopes to inspire even more kids to see themselves in a gainful future in tech.
“Everyone wants to go on vacation, have the car you want, you want to have a good life. I mean, we all want that,” he added. “It is so possible with STEM careers. If you look at so many of the professional basketball teams right now, the football teams, they’re owned by folks who run STEM businesses.
“I don’t know who said it first, but nerds run the world, so we need to go ahead and get with the program.”
Related
