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Omaha Data Science Academy
2120 N. 30th Street Omaha NE 68111
same
www.canlearnsmart.com
https://www.facebook.com/canlearnsmart/
Nate Watson
Dean
nate@canworksmart.com
+1 (402) 516-8087
Yes
The ODSA is operated with a board of directors who oversee a Dean (Nate Watson). Watson oversees a CFO and Head of Curriculum. The Head of Curriculum oversees part-time instructors. In addition, the organization has four primary advisors: A fiscal sponsor, a fundraising consultant, a donor representative, and an individual who is head of the scholarship fund (both of these roles are unfilled).
Uploaded at end of application
Since its founding in 2016, the Omaha Data Science Academy (ODSA) has trained and certified 55 individuals for various tech careers. This includes the two years during the pandemic when the academy did not run classes. This project will fund scholarships to become a certified data scientist. The project will help the ODSA promote its three-fold mission: --To provide businesses with data scientists to help them make data-driven decisions, operate more efficiently, and be more profitable; --To diversify the data science workforce; and --To give historically underrepresented, low-income individuals access to a high-paying career that can improve their quality of life. Since its inception, the ODSA has prioritized expanding and diversifying the tech field--of those who have graduated from the academy so far, 39% were women and 34% were Black, indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC). However, our number of graduates are relatively small because the out-of-pocket cost of the certification (~$10,000) is still out of reach for many minority and low-income Nebraskans. This funding will enable the ODSA to effectively recruit from historically underrepresented populations since being able to offer scholarships will remove the biggest impediment most people have to becoming a trained data scientist.
Scholarships to Diversify Nebraska’s Tech Workforce
2875702.0
2875702.0
Service/program
The ODSA seeks funding to provide scholarships that will cover the full cost of training individuals to become certified data scientists. Funding will cover administrative expenses to operate the scholarship program, as well as the cost of individual scholarships over a three-year period. The goal is to provide the Omaha metro region’s businesses with approximately 240 data scientists by the end of 2025, since industry experts estimate that Nebraska will need a minimum of 500 data scientists over the next five years. The ODSA will recruit from across the Omaha metro region, but recruitment will focus heavily on low-income areas in North Omaha, which has a higher poverty level than the rest of the state. We have developed partnerships with Code Black and the Nebraska Tech Collaborative, among others, to reach populations that have historically been underrepresented in data science, such as women and people of color. Black and Hispanic families were disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, having lost income, burned through savings, and taken on debt to survive, according to a 2021 report by the University of Nebraska Omaha. Women also lost jobs at a higher rate during the pandemic, and most of the nation’s 6.6 million jobs gained since January have gone to men, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The ODSA scholarship program will provide between 60-90 adults annually with the opportunity to train for a stable, high-paying career with family-friendly hours in less than a year, all while providing local businesses with the data scientists they need to be more competitive in the national and global market. A significant portion of scholarships (at least 75%) will be allocated to women, BIPOC, and low-income individuals. Trainings are offered three times a year and during each session, training takes place twice a week at Seventy Five North, a community center in North Omaha. Classes also will be livestreamed, making training accessible to people without childcare, with disabilities, and without transportation.
2023: 60 scholarship recipients graduate (2 training sessions completed by Dec. 31) 2024: 90 scholarship recipients graduate (6 training sessions completed by Dec. 31) 2025: 90 scholarship recipients graduate (6 training sessions completed by Dec. 31) Total by end of 2025: 240 data scientists
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Long-Lasting Economic Growth (i.e., a proposal that will foster gainful employment opportunities and financial investment in the area, leading to the creation of generational wealth and widespread economic vitality in North and South Omaha)
Policy (i.e., develop or improve context-sensitive education, finance, health, training, zoning, etc.) Sustainable Community (i.e., create or enhance housing, services, education, civic uses, recreation, etc.)
The ODSA prepares students for data science careers through targeted, skills-based classes taught by practicing professionals. The academy has four core certificate programs, each corresponding to a specific career path: 1. Data Visualization--Teaches how to translate complex data into visual representations so business leaders can better understand the data to make sound decisions. 2. Business Intelligence--Teaches how to cleanse, transform, and model data to gather useful information that can support decision-making. 3. Data Engineering--Teaches how to create and manage databases specific to a company’s needs. 4. Machine Learning/AI--Teaches how to build and use analytical tools to glean insight from data. Leaders then use that information to make decisions about customer acquisition, operational efficiency, and other key metrics. By recruiting and training data scientists from underrepresented populations in North Omaha through this scholarship program, the ODSA will increase training opportunities and access to a higher quality of life for low-income residents. According to the Nebraska Tech Collaborative, the state will need approximately 10,000 tech workers over the next 10 years. Statewide, colleges are producing fewer than 500 tech workers per year, while trade schools are producing just around 100 tech workers annually. This is simply not enough to meet Nebraska’s growing need for these trained professionals. In Nebraska, there are only three other trade schools other than the ODSA that train tech workers. While the tech certifications offered by trade schools take significantly less time and money to obtain than a university degree, the out-of-pocket fees are still out of reach of many low-income and minority residents. Our scholarship program taps new populations to solve the state’s shortage of skilled tech workers, while training low-income individuals for a career in a growing field that offers a livable wage for entry level positions.
The Visioning Workshop identified that North Omaha has a higher concentration of younger, ethnic and racial minorities, and “working poor” residents. Overall, lower-income residents in this area have seasonal and/or low-paying hourly jobs without benefits. North Omaha also has few career pathways and internship programs to increase labor shortages. All of this has resulted in serious income disparities and limited social and economic opportunities for residents. The ODSA scholarship program leverages the strengths of North Omaha while addressing the area’s economic weaknesses. For example: --Younger population: Younger generations are more comfortable with technology, and will find a tech career through ODSA training more attractive. Currently, there is a misconception that tech=software coding, but ODSA will overcome this perception by marketing within North Omaha about the role of data scientists and businesses’ need for these professional goals, raising awareness about a career in data science. --More diverse population: One of the ODSA’s goals is to diversify the tech workforce in Nebraska by recruiting from populations such as women and BIPOC that have historically been underrepresented in data science. North Omaha’s population is a natural fit to help us reach this goal. --Economic opportunity for low-income residents: Within six months, scholarship recipients will be able to earn a Fundamentals of Data Science Certification that recommends them to work as data scientists with an average starting salary of $55,000 in the Omaha metro area. The program provides economic opportunities to individuals who might not otherwise be able to afford a college degree or more expensive tech training. It also provides them with professional career pathway that will help them escape the cycle of poverty and grow generational wealth. --Long-term, this project solves numerous economic problems for North Omaha. It elevates marginalized, low-income populations into lucrative professional careers at minimum time and expense while helping local businesses gain access to the trained tech workers they need to make data-driven decisions and become more profitable.
This project assists a population--low-income, women, and BIPOC residents in the Omaha metro area--that experienced a negative economic impact because of the pandemic. It also focuses on workforce development in North Omaha, a location specifically targeted for economic development through LB1024. The project also addresses the long-standing lack of economic opportunity in North Omaha through racial segregation and redlining. Each scholarship offers a low-income individual with just a diploma or GED the opportunity to train for just six months at zero personal cost for a career in data science. This career has a starting salary of $55,000 per year in the region and will provide a living wage with benefits that can break the cycle of poverty for many minority residents.
This proposal will create 240 permanent jobs that average $55,000 per year in salary, with $10,000 per year in benefits.
240
0
$52,000 to $65,000/year
Students will be actively recruited from North Omaha, with onsite classes held at Seventy Five North, a community center accessible by public transportation. Students also can access the livestreamed training remotely via a desktop, laptop, smartphone, or tablet, making it accessible for people with additional barriers such as lack of childcare, disabilities, or lack of reliable transportation. After graduating from the program, students will be eligible to apply for data science jobs through local businesses that include Mutual of Omaha, Peter Keiwit, Huggle, Union Pacific, and ConAgra. Like Seventy Five North, many of the city’s businesses that desperately need to hire data scientists are accessible from North Omaha via public transportation.
Approximately three-fourths of scholarships (180) will be reserved for women, BIPOC, and low-income residents, who were hardest hit economically by the pandemic and who historically have comprised a tiny percentage of tech workers. The program also will improve livability within the community by increasing the number of individuals earning a living wage.
The ODSA certification program only requires students to have a high school diploma or GED, so training is available to those with lower education levels. Once earned, the Fundamentals in Data Science Certification recommends graduates for entry-level jobs that pay an average of $55,000 per year, with significant earning potential over the lifetime. These jobs also provide benefits such as healthcare insurance, disability insurance, paid time off, and retirement contributions that are not offered through seasonal and/or hourly jobs. This income level and benefits make it possible for graduates to afford necessities and build assets over time, breaking the cycle of poverty. Communities like North Omaha, which has been experiencing a population decline as people leave the area to pursue training and jobs, will be positioned to reverse this trend. A more stable population will attract additional businesses and recreational initiatives, increasing the overall economic health and cultural vibrancy of the community.
The ODSA certification program is unique in that it prepares student for data science careers in significantly less time and financial investment than other independent and university-based programs. Our program also uses practicing professionals who teach students how to analyze data using real-world scenarios that are relevant to Omaha’s business community. The program is innovative in that we are proposing to actively recruit from underrepresented populations to simultaneously identity new workers for this field and to diversify its demographics. In the past, the tech field has been mostly passive, making itself available to individuals who feel inclined to pursue a tech career. Little effort was made to make the general population aware of the diverse roles within the tech field or to remove the barriers that were keeping people from entering the field, such as cost, lack of transportation, or lack of childcare. For these reasons, tech has developed primarily into a field populated by young, single, middle-class white males. This passive model will simply not produce the adequate numbers of tech workers needed for Nebraska’s business needs during this period of pandemic recovery. Nor will it result in a robust, diversified, ever-expanding workforce that Nebraska’s business community needs to make data-driven decisions and be competitive and profitable long-term. The ODSA scholarship program takes a new approach to expanding the tech workforce in Nebraska by removing barriers to entering the field and actively recruiting from groups that have not historically had access to a high-paying professional tech career with benefits.
The ODSA has set the following outcomes of the scholarship program. By the end of 2025: 1. At least 240 individuals will become certified data scientists. 2. Businesses in the Omaha metro region will have an increased labor pool of data scientists to hire. 3. The data science field will be significantly diversified, with greater representation of women and people of color. 4. At least 75% of scholarship recipients will be employed within six months of being certified as a data scientist. 5. At least 120 low-income individuals (at least 50% of scholarship recipients) will increase their income by 25% or greater within 12 months of graduating. 6. At least 75% of scholarship recipients who enter the field will remain working in data science at 12 months post-graduation.
These outcomes will be measured by the ODSA staff through pre- and post-training surveys.
Within five years, the ODSA would like to develop additional certifications with requisite scholarship programs that will further diversify the field while meeting the tech needs of Nebraska’s business community. When that occurs, Seventy Five North will not be an adequate training space, and the ODSA will need to renovate a larger, dedicated training facility within North Omaha.
Yes
Code Black and the Nebraska Tech Collaborative will help the ODSA recruit scholarship recipients from underrepresented populations.
We have formal agreements with Code Black and NTC.
No
Seventy Five North, N. 30th Street, Ste. 200, Omaha, NE 68111 (this is where training will take place; classes also will be livestreamed from this location)
Within one or more QCTs
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Costs were through the existing cost of training offered by the ODSA for the Fundaments of Data Science Certification, as well as consultation with our fundraising consultant and fiscal sponsor for administrative costs.
No
This funding will cover costs for the ODSA to conduct a scholarship program for three years (2023-2025) that will recruit, train, and certify 240 individuals to work as entry-level data scientists. The cost of scholarships are around $10,000 per year. A portion of funding will be used to cover administrative expenses (see budget).
Most funds (approximately 80-85%) will be used to cover the cost for individuals to receive training through ODSA and graduate with a Fundamentals in Data Science certification. Each scholarship will cover the total cost of training, with no additional out-of-pocket fees required by students. The remaining funds (approximately 15-20%) will be used to cover administrative costs to operate the scholarship program, which will include recruitment, processing applications, enrolling students, and program evaluation.
Yes
The money will be held in trust by the ODSA’s fiscal sponsor, the Community Foundation for Western Iowa. The ODSA will request funds from the Foundation for eligible expenses tied to the scholarship program’s approved annual budget, with disbursement occurring within 30 days of request to ensure timely program delivery.
Google: $50,000 (pending) Investment Connection: $577,000 (pending; for one year of expenses)
Google: January 2023; Investment Connection: November 2023
No
Yes
Yes, this project is scalable. Because each scholarship is approximately $10,000, the ODSA can adjust the number of scholarships awarded to match the amount funded. A smaller number of scholarships also would require less administrative support, and we are prepared to reduce these expenses if needed.
The ODSA operates classes three times per year and covers all administrative, promotional, and instructional costs regardless of the number of students enrolled. We seek scholarship funds to expand access to our certifications and to diversify this workforce, since most of those who can afford to pay for the training out of pocket (approximately $9,400) are white males from middle class backgrounds.
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Organizational Chart Proposal Budget/Sources and Uses