Galvanize — an education company focused on data science, web development and entrepreneurship — and IBM today announced a collaboration to help support diversity in data science and data engineering. IBM will commit to provide support to female participants in Galvanize programs, from tuition assistance and mentorship to internships and employment opportunities.

“With today’s announcement, IBM expands our investment advancing women in data science and our mission to educate one million data scientists and engineers around Spark”

Galvanize, an education company that blends the lines between learning and working, provides access for anyone who has the drive and determination to jump into the tech world in the fields of entrepreneurship, engineering, and data science. The company is committed to improving representation in the technology industry of women, African Americans, Latinos, people who identify as LGBT, and US Veterans. Galvanize’s focus is to build partnerships with technology employers who share these goals in order to provide the necessary training and introductions to these employees.

As part of this collaboration, IBM will serve as the Program Sponsor of Galvanize Data Science, deepening its commitment to educate more than one million data scientists and data engineers on Spark. Along with the new IBM Scholarship for women pursuing careers in data science and engineering, students will also be given the opportunity to apply for internship programs and capstone projects at IBM. Working closely with members of the IBM Analytics team, women participating in Galvanize programs will have access to the latest advances in analytics technology and gain hands-on experience with a wide spectrum of software solutions.

According to Girls Who Code, only 14 percent of computer science graduates today are women, a decline from 37 percent in 1984. IBM is committed to diversifying the tech talent pipeline and inspiring the next generation of business leaders to think differently about how technology can be used to transform business and redefine industries: by supporting organizations and programs that empower women in technology and address the lack of women in technology professions.

To date, Galvanize has partnered with technology employers and diversity organizations to make technology roles more accessible. Examples include:

  • Silicon Valley Bank is currently providing $50,000 in tuition assistance for Latinos participating in the Galvanize Full Stack Web Development and Galvanize Data Science Immersive programs.
  • Jessie Jackson and the Rainbow Push Coalition are providing full tuition assistance ($48,000) for one African American student in each class of the GalvanizeU-University of New Haven Master’s of Science in Data Science.
  • Galvanize has partnered with Women Who Code and Glassbreakers to provide assistance to female students and reach communities of women interested in technology.
  • The Galvanize Diversity Award provides tuition assistance to women, ethnic minorities, veterans, and others who haven’t had an opportunity to pursue STEM careers. For example, in the past, Galvanize has provided scholarships to individuals who have not completed a four-year college degree.
  • To support US Veterans, Galvanize sponsors Patriot Boot Camp and provides complimentary membership to Vets in Tech and Patriot Boot Camp. Galvanize is beginning the process to apply for GI bill funds in Colorado, home to 3 Galvanize locations.

A growing number of organizations today recognize applications such as Apache Hadoop and Spark as powerful technologies for collecting and economically storing a very large set of highly variable data, and yet there is a challenge to realize the data’s full potential in every part of their business. As the size and complexity of Hadoop and Spark applications continue to grow, data science continues to be a critical function for unlocking meaningful insights that identify actions that could optimize entire business outcomes.

“With today’s announcement, IBM expands our investment advancing women in data science and our mission to educate one million data scientists and engineers around Spark,” said Beth Smith, General Manager, IBM Analytics Platform. “We are excited to share this common goal with Galvanize, a company dedicated to attracting a strong network of students, mentors and organizations to learn, collaborate and create the next-generation of high tech and digital business leaders.”

Galvanize provides 3 full-time educational programs:

• Galvanize Data Science –12-week immersive program focused on statistical analysis, machine learning, software engineering, and working with data at scale. Offered in San Francisco, Seattle, and Denver.

• Galvanize Full Stack –24-week immersive program focused on building web applications with Ruby on Rails and JavaScript. Offered in San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Boulder, and Fort Collins.

• GalvanizeU Masters of Science in Data Science through University of New Haven –One year accredited program focused on advanced statistics, machine learning, and data engineering. Offered in San Francisco.

Another example of IBM’s commitment to building next-generation STEM skill is P-TECH, an innovative education model co-developed by IBM that’s helping to reinvent high school and preparing youth, particularly students of color from low-income families, to go beyond high school, earn a college degree, and enter the workforce with skills that employers need. Within six years, students can earn both a high school diploma and an associate degree. This model helps young people to be college and career-ready with STEM skills. The network of P-TECH schools will grow to more than 40 schools and partnerships with 100 companies by Fall 2015.

IBM is working closely with hundreds of universities and organizations around the globe to create programs that teach students market-ready skills, and help transform industries and enterprises. These programs include Cloud-based open source technology, industry hackathons, and developer training programs.