Giving back to the communities we live and do business in has been a core component of World Wide Technology's culture since we were founded over 30 years ago. This year, to amplify our efforts, we established a month-long campaign to engage our teams in local volunteerism called May of Caring.

As part of our May of Caring, I'm proud to celebrate our partnership with Boys Hope Girls Hope (BHGH) and announced the creation of the World Wide Technology Scholars program — established to empower young people with the skills they need to thrive in higher education, careers and the world that awaits them.

BHGH, which serves over 1,200 young people across 16 locations in the U.S. and Latin America, is an organization with a rich 45 year history. I love BHGH's mission "to nurture and guide motivated young people in need to become well-educated, career-ready men and women for others."

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As a board member since 2013 and Board Chair for the last four years, I've had the opportunity to see the tremendous impact BHGH has on the lives of young people every single day. 

Alongside the incredible support of our CEO Jim Kavanaugh and Chairman Dave Steward, our WWT employees serve in multiple capacities, from regional board participation — Juanita Logan in St. Louis, Laura Weber in southern California and Brad Amico in Arizona — to other opportunities to become part of this incredible mission. 

WWT employees share their experience with BHGH scholars and collegians through speaking engagements, web design, networking and consulting on technology. We've been able to open doors for BHGH throughout the pandemic and beyond for access to technology and programming that bolsters their work and outcomes. It's inspiring to see what happens when BHGH is there for each young person it serves through the most vulnerable and critical transitions of their lives — from middle to high school, high school to college, and through career launch. 

Just this past April, I had a chance to meet BHGH alumnus Kenneth Stable during a gathering in St. Louis and hear his amazing story. 

"We were in and out of shelters, motels, empty houses, and properties for sale," he told me of his experience prior to BHGH. Now, Kenneth is getting married next fall and finishing his law degree at the University of Denver in the spring of 2023. Additionally, this BHGH of Colorado alumnus is running to become the next State Representative for Colorado's new State House District 37.

In my travels around the BHGH network, I've been impressed by the tremendous dedication of team members like Rebecca Limbaugh in Detroit. Rebecca, who joined the BHGH team in 2013, grew up in an environment similar to many of the scholars in our program and understands the impact love, resources, opportunity, exposure and support can have on a child who is determined to enhance the quality of his or her life. As a result, she is a driven advocate for the scholars in the BHGH program and was recently promoted from program director to executive director. 

Five years ago, in alignment with Jim Kavanaugh's existing support, WWT Chairman Dave Steward committed to accelerating the impact of WWT's partnership with BHGH by investing to help more of their collegians achieve dreams of pursuing careers in STEM, business and the arts. The BHGH Steward Scholars program helped build bridges to college degrees and employment in STEM fields by providing scholarships, mentoring and internships at WWT, and access to industry conferences. 

The results have been fantastic and the growth we have seen from more than 60 BHGH collegians who have accepted the challenge is truly phenomenal. Some are now pursuing master's degrees, while others are employed at nonprofits or top companies in technology, finance, health care, sales, research, and real estate. Above all, they continue to be people for others by giving back to their communities. 

The greatest impact of our work with BHGH is when we see their scholars and collegians begin their first jobs. 

Recently, our powerful partnership manifested another success story in the life of BHGH alumnus Medan Mamo. Medan's parents had immigrated to the U.S. searching for opportunity when he was a baby. As a BHGH collegian, Medan received financial support for college (graduating early with a 4.0 GPA) and was connected to WWT for a data science internship in 2021. 

I was thrilled to hear that this past March, Medan accepted a full-time analyst position at WWT! He's one step closer to a career in data science because of the tremendous opportunities powered by WWT and BHGH.

 "At critical times in my life, BHGH cared about my education, well-being, and success," Medan said. "It's the gift that keeps on giving!" 

We care deeply at World Wide Technology! I'm energized by our multifaceted commitment to opportunity at BHGH, including the World Wide Technology Scholars program. 

I am excited to announce we will continue this high-impact partnership with a significant investment in 2022-23. Through Jim Kavanaugh's increased support on behalf of WWT and Chairman Dave Steward's continued investment, this newly named World Wide Technology Scholars program aligns the values that are critically important to Dave, Jim and the culture of WWT — our passion for technology and the creation of opportunity for these scholars. 

WWT employees are integral to this rich experience through mentorship roles, ongoing guidance and collaboration with World Wide Technology Scholars, and I invite you to be part of this rich experience. 

I'm incredibly excited to witness the impact this will have on the entire community!

Learn more about BHGH and their mission. Visit their website.