Although Ne-Yo temporarily stepped out of the musical spotlight to focus on fatherhood and other ventures, the famed singer/songwriter carved out time to familiarize himself with a new arena. According to Tech Crunch, the “Because Of You” artist invested $2.3 million in a coding facility named Holberton School.
This new venture will ensure that students from underrepresented communities receive the chance to pursue a career in coding. Holberton is also tuition-free up until you land a job within that respective field. The fees will start once your career begins. Tech Crunch adds that the school requires 17 percent of your salary over the course of those first three years of joining the workforce.
“Everybody knows that tech and all these things are the wave of the future,” Ne-Yo said to the news site. “I just love the fact of what they’re doing with the school — that they’re making it easier for underrepresented people in the world of tech. They’re giving them a platform and access to this knowledge that they probably wouldn’t get otherwise. I think that’s one of the coolest things about this whole situation.”
In addition to remaining an accessible figure on the school’s board, the Grammy Award-winning artist shared that this is another major step in the direction of diversifying the tech world. “Tech is changing the world by the second so it makes sense to get the people that live in the world to be part of this thing that’s changing it,” he said, “as opposed to just this one group of people.”
As highlighted by Blavity, mega-companies are beginning to expand their recruitment of minority students interested in tech. Recently, Google teamed up with Howard University to establish a computer science residency. In a statement issued by the university’s President Dr. Wayne A. I. Frederick, “Howard West will produce hundreds of industry-ready black computer science graduates, future leaders with the power to transform the global technology space into a stronger, more accurate reflection of the world around us.”