The corporate philanthropic arm of AT&T Inc., the AT&T Foundation, donated $95,000 to San Antonio technology industry advocacy organization Tech Bloc to create a new matchmaker job to connect students with businesses, it announced Monday.
The mentorship coordinator would be under contract with the Centers for Applied Science and Technologies, or CAST Tech, and be responsible for one-on-one mentorship between local professionals and students.
Tech Bloc has more than 150 individuals signed up to mentor the inaugural freshman class, but in the next three years about 450 more professionals would be needed to meet enrollment.
U.S. Rep. Will Hurd lauded the effort and the new school’s principal Melissa Alcala and noted that students with mentors are more likely to succeed. The goal is for students to shadow local information technology professionals on the job and potentially secure internships.
“We hope to extend learning outside of the classroom and give students the opportunity to connect with tech leaders across our community and gain real-world experiences in IT,” said David Heard, CEO at Tech Bloc in a statement.
Recent fundraising efforts for CAST Tech, which is located inside a renovated technical shop near Fox Tech High School downtown, rustled up nearly $15 million for the new school.
Source: San Antonio Business Journal By: Kristen Mosbrucker
