In 2020, the Discovery Partners Institute (DPI) established the Pritzker Tech Talent Labs (PTTL) through an initial grant from the Pritzker Foundation to cultivate a more inclusive tech workforce equipped with in-demand skills. Over the last five years, PTTL has reached more than 5,000 participants through a suite of programs serving middle and high school students, K–12 teachers, two-and four-year college students, and adults in the workforce – advancing tech and computing skills, college and career readiness, and individual economic mobility.
We are delighted to share and celebrate PTTL’s impact over the last five years and build upon this strong foundation. Our important work continues with exciting momentum as we work even more closely with The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Together, we are laser-focused on partnering with Chicago leaders and changemakers to develop top-tier workforce talent, drive digital transformation and position Chicago as a leader in the global innovation economy.
Highlights of PTTL’s impact include:
- 400+ students who have participated in our high school programs are pursuing a four-year degree, with 70% in tech-focused majors, including computer science, data science, statistics and engineering.
- 550+ K–12 teachers have participated in our professional development programs, enabling them to deliver higher-quality computer science instruction to reach tens of thousands of students within their classrooms.
- We have supported 550+ community college and 4-year students, increasing the number who intend to transfer and deepening their connections to the Chicago tech community through internships, project-based learning and company visits.
- 1,000+ adult learners have joined our online learning community, with 155 trained on-site, and nearly 100 deployed to seven Fortune 100 and Global Fortune 500 companies.
- 525 industry professionals representing 240 employers have supported PTTL programming by volunteering their time as mentors, workshop facilitators, guest speakers and panelists.
- 66% of our program participants have come from economically disadvantaged areas.
We thank each of our funders, academic partners, corporate partners, volunteers, mentors, instructors and program participants for making this work possible.