Giving back takes two very important steps: Identifying a problem and taking steps toward solving it. This Giving Tuesday, Vail Systems has done both through a partnership with Seneca Foundation that aims to give Black and Latino Chicago Public Schools (CPS) graduates a foothold in the local tech industry.
It’s no secret that there is a lack of Black and Latino representation in the tech industry as a whole. According to an August article on Crain’s Chicago Business, roughly 17 percent of employees in computer jobs are Black or Latino — compared to a combined 37 percent of the overall population — and a majority of those jobs are in IT operations and other support jobs, rather than the more creative and lucrative software development positions. This gap begins in the education system.
Vail Systems and Seneca Foundation understand that to solve the disparity in the tech field, their focus needs to be on giving students more opportunities early on.
“Seneca Foundation offers recent CPS Black and Latinx graduates a year-long paid apprenticeship that includes technical training, professional development education, a technical apprenticeship before they start college and college tuition assistance,” said Vail Systems CEO Jim Whiteley. Through their partnership, Vail employees are given the chance to act as tutors, mentors and leaders in this program.
“I wanted to offer a way for Black and Latinx students to gain the skills and work experience necessary for a fulfilling career in STEM while getting paid,” Whiteley continued, citing the difficulties often faced by students with college debt, unpaid internships and lack of resources for networking.
In addition to their Giving Tuesday partnership, Vail dedicates itself to charitable efforts all year, including a volleyball tournament to fight cancer and a national backpack drive. Built In Chicago sat down with Whiteley to learn more about Vail Systems’ philanthropic efforts — which have continued even in a remote work environment.
What is your company doing this year to make an impact on Giving Tuesday?
Vail Systems has been part of the Chicagoland tech community for the past 30 years. Understanding how to meaningfully give back to our community is something we really think about at Vail, and where we put our efforts is constantly changing based on where we see a need.
In 2020, we knew we wanted to directly address the overall lack of diversity in the tech industry. Vail partnered with Seneca Foundation to do just that. Today, Seneca Foundation offers recent CPS Black and Latinx graduates a year-long paid apprenticeship that includes technical training, professional development education, a technical apprenticeship before they start college and college tuition assistance. Vail employees have the opportunity to get involved as technical tutors, mentors, workshop leaders and panelists. In just a year, Seneca has already shown us that incredible outcomes are possible when more opportunities are available in our community.
Why did you decide to give to this particular cause or organization?
We may be biased, but we believe that careers in software development provide the highest likelihood of economic mobility, career advancement, financial security and civic leadership. It makes absolutely no sense to me that under the current system, a young adult must wait four years and amass over $40,000 in college debt before they can start earning income and working in the software development field. Not to mention the increased obstacles and lack of opportunities offered to students of color. I wanted to offer a way for Black and Latinx students to gain the skills and work experience necessary for a fulfilling career in STEM while getting paid. Seneca’s work makes this possible and this partnership with Vail proves our theory of change.
Organizing to benefit our local community is something we can do to come together even while being physically apart.”
How else does your company give back to the local community throughout the year?
After transitioning to a primarily remote-work environment, organizing to benefit our local community is something we can do to come together even while being physically apart. This past summer, we rounded up our annual Vail team to compete in Team Bright Side’s Spike Against Cancer, an event that one of our very own Vail employees initially educated us about. It is a yearly volleyball tournament and fundraiser at Chicago’s North Avenue beach that raises funds to eradicate pediatric blood cancers.
More recently, we’ve matched Vail employee donations for our annual National Backpack Day donation drive organized by Children’s First Fund. We’re proud to have raised enough funds to offer 57 culturally relevant book packs for the home libraries of children in Chicago Public Schools. These efforts, along with our partnership with Seneca Foundation, let Vail create educational opportunities for the community.
