OCTO’s Mobile Tech Lab is filled with 10 students for the PC for Beginners in Spanish class. Arturo Griffiths, Trabajadores Unidos executive director, stands center with community members taking the class. Photos and video by Angela Wright, outreach and admissions specialist.
Together, as a community, we can do so much. This is Byte Back’s first class in partnership with Trabajadores Unidos de Washington (Workers United of Washington DC), and already we’re confident this relationship will benefit our community for classes to come.
The PC for Beginners students, who are members of the Trabajadores Unidos group, are day laborers who are trying to establish economic self sufficiency. This goal is what led the group’s executive director, Arturo Griffiths, to connecting with Byte Back.
Jackie Reyes, the director of the Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs, speaks with students during her recent visit to the class.
Leonel De Leon, AmeriCorps computer literacy instructor, is thrilled to teach in his native language and help the community learn computer skills.
The partnership didn’t end there, though. Byte Back also connected with the Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs, a partner and funder for Spanish computer classes, and the DC Office of the Chief Technology Officer to make the beginner computer training course a reality. Together, we brought the students, teacher, and classroom (OCTO’s Mobile Tech Lab) straight to the people, in Columbia Heights.
This month, the PC for Beginners students took their first step into a mobile tech lab and the first step into using technology and computers in their future careers. With the continued support of the community, this won’t be their last.