“Pay it forward” seems to be the motto by which Per Scholas CEO, Plinio Ayala, lives.

Plinio grew up in the Bronx neighborhood of New York City during the “Bronx is Burning” era of the 1970s. Access to training or education opportunities that allowed talented and driven individuals to succeed was almost impossible to come by. But, Plinio got lucky. “I was fortunate to be noticed by an English teacher who saw my potential and supported me into the Better Chance Program that let me attend the Collegiate School in Manhattan on a scholarship. It is because of that opportunity that I am here today, and I have dedicated my career to supporting others so that they have the same chances that I did.”

Founded in the South Bronx, NY in 1994 Per Scholas was established by two corporate IT professionals who collectively believed in the transformational power of technology. They recognized one of the main causes of the digital divide was the inability for public schools in underserved neighborhoods to afford personal computers to teach basic hardware and software skills to children in the community.

Early on, Per Scholas partnered with corporations in the five boroughs to recycle and refurbish computers, donating them to schools that could benefit from the additional technology. They hired local community members from the Bronx and taught them the skills to refurbish the computers themselves. But, after a few months on the job, their newly-trained employees left to take higher-paying jobs in the private sector.

Plinio recalls, “At first we were frustrated by the loss of our newly trained staff, but our leadership quickly recognized a major workforce development opportunity and an answer to the skill gap that they had heard echoed by employer partners.”

And with that, the Per Scholas of today was born. The nonprofit bridges the digital divide by equipping motivated and curious individuals from underserved communities with the technical and business skills to launch successful careers in technology.