Wired: IBM's School Could Fix Education and Tech's Diversity Gap

[DEAD7]

Wired positively gushes over IBM's Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH), saying it could fix education and tech's diversity gap. Backed by IBM, the P-TECH program aims to prepare mainly minority kids from low-income backgrounds for careers in technology, allowing them to earn a high school diploma and a free associate degree in six years or less. That P-TECH's six inaugural graduates completed the program in four years and were offered jobs with IBM, Wired reports, is "irrefutable proof that this solution might actually work" (others aren't as impressed, although the President is drinking the Kool-Aid). While the program has only actually graduated six students since it was announced in 2010, Wired notes that by fall, 40 schools across the country will be designed in P-TECH's image. IBM backs four of them, but they'll also be run by tech giants like Microsoft and SAP, major energy companies like ConEdison, along with hospital systems, manufacturing associations, and civil engineering trade groups. They go by different names and are geared toward different career paths, but they all follow the IBM playbook.

 

[wheywhey]

IBM started the program in Brooklyn but they didn't have anything to do with running the school and they clearly stated that they are not guaranteeing any jobs.

The kids who graduated in four years instead of six were obviously the cream of the crop. Only three chose to work for IBM, the other three chose to get their bachelor's degree. Two of the six kids were Asian and both chose to go continue with college. (P-Tech Brooklyn is 4% Asian). Most if not all of the six were children of immigrants. It remains to be seen if this program with have any effect on tech diversity.