Hopeworks CEO Dan Rhoton explains how AI is a tool for helping young people build meaningful careers.
Hopeworks, a nonprofit social enterprise operating in Camden, New Jersey, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, offers young adults facing barriers to economic opportunity critical technological training in AI-augmented skills, including web development, data visualization and geographic information systems (GIS). Utilizing components of the Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA, its mission is to provide a strong foundation for the modern workplace, transforming participants into users of technology, rather than just consumers of it.
The results are profound, says Dan Rhoton, chief executive officer of Hopeworks. “When our young adults walk in, they’re typically underemployed, making less than $400 a year,” he says. “Walking out, they’re usually making over $45,000 a year, with an over 90% 12-month retention rate.” Job retention is key. “If someone gets a job with a living wage and keeps it for a year, data shows they’re going to remain in the job market for the rest of their lives,” Rhoton adds.
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The nonprofit provides paid training, career support and real work to help 17- to-26-year-olds move into full-time jobs averaging $43K a year. In a bright room at Hopeworks Kensington, young adults sit at computers learning to code, build websites and prepare for careers many once thought were out of reach. Some come in unsure of […]
