White House Teams with Industry, Nonprofits to Promote Tech Inclusion

Yesterday, the White House honored 11 “Champions of Change” who are working to promote an inclusive technology-based economy. The honorees ranged from nonprofit leaders to a mathematics professor to the author of a children’s book. Eight of the 11 “champions” focused on introducing young students to programming and technology, reflecting the significant emphasis on the long-term investment in future workers, especially those who are underrepresented and underserved. These honorees reflect efforts by nonprofits and citizens, but are only one aspect of a growing movement in the public and private sector to create a more inclusive economy now and in the future.

The “Champions of Change: Tech Inclusion” event was part of the White House Tech Inclusion Initiative that promotes science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) as an investment in the future of the U.S. economy. The initiative centers on the president’s goal of broadening STEM education and producing one million STEM graduates in the next decade. One of the honorees at the event concisely captured the notion driving the White House Tech Inclusion Initiative when she said, “We cannot afford to lose another generation. ” Earlier this year, the White House reached out to industry leaders and convened the White House Tech Inclusion Summit that brought innovators from the private sector to contribute. One such initiative is the Accelerate Local Communities initiative that encourages cities to bring together NGOs, industry, and public organizations to develop inclusive and competitive innovation economies.

While the “Champions of Change” honorees and other private-sector initiatives are working actively to improve tech inclusion, the focus remains heavily on education and connecting young students to STEM fields. There remains a need to focus on adult workers and entrepreneurs who need technology-based skills training or entrepreneurship coaching to transition into a STEM field and build successful, technology-based companies.

 Learn more at SSTI's 17th Annual Conference!

Johnathan Holifield of NorTech and Mike Green of the America21 project are two professionals in the field of technology-based economic development (TBED) who lead programs that serve minority tech entrepreneurs. These two visionaries will be leading a discussion on the topic of tech inclusion and inclusive competitiveness at SSTI’s 17th Annual Conference in Portland, Oregon, on September 15-17, 2013. The session, Broadening Ownership of the Innovation Economy, will highlight how Holifield and Green are working within TBED to target and support minority tech entrepreneurs. Attendees will hear about the tools necessary for TBED organizations to foster an inclusive innovation ecosystem. Read more about this session and the 17th Annual SSTI Conference at http://ssticonference.org and register today!