SILVER2023

Byte Back

Tech Within Reach

aka Byte Back, Inc.   |   Washington, DC   |  http://www.byteback.org

Mission

Byte Back’s mission is to close the digital divide by providing historically excluded communities an equitable pathway into the digital economy. We do this through digital advocacy, digital literacy training, and tech certification training.

Ruling year info

1998

Interim CEO

Ms. Wanda Pierce

Main address

899 N Capitol St NE Suite 850

Washington, DC 20002 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

52-2061398

NTEE code info

Employment Training (J22)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.

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Communication

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Byte Back seeks to break the digital divide and cycles of inequity and poverty by providing free career training and career services. Byte Back trains unemployed and underemployed adults, helping them develop foundational computer skills and gain in-demand tech certifications to move into careers. Our training programs address the inequities our communities face in education and the workforce. Free technical training and career services provide the opportunities adults seek - education and a family-sustaining wage career. On average, employed Byte Back graduates make $21,000 a year more than before coming to Byte Back, and more than 130 have entered employment over the last three years.

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Digital Literacy

Building foundational digital skills is a unique experience for technical learners. Without them, future careers are closed off and conducting personal business is impossible. That's why with Byte Back, adult learners can begin their technical training with the foundations. From no or minimal computer experience, to developing basic Office skills, these courses provide a base of learning for program participants. Classes are available in English and Spanish.

Population(s) Served
Unemployed people
Economically disadvantaged people

Industry-recognized certification courses prepare adult learners for a living-wage career in the modern, digital workforce. Certification pathways include 1) IT with CompTIA certifications and 2) Administrative with Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certifications.

Population(s) Served
Unemployed people
Economically disadvantaged people

Training is complemented by soft skill building, career preparation classes, and placement support. Whether gaining savvy in communications or problem solving or developing a resume and cover letter, Byte Back provides additional coaching to help participants enter the workforce. Support continues through career retention in the first year of employment.

Population(s) Served
Unemployed people
Economically disadvantaged people

Where we work

Videos

Our results

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.

Number of participants who gain employment

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Economically disadvantaged people

Related Program

Workforce Development and Career Readiness

Type of Metric

Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Placements dropped in 2020 due to decreased hiring during the pandemic.

Number of hours of training

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Hours of training across course levels.

Average hourly wage of clients who became employed after job skills training

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Certification Training

Type of Metric

Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues

Direction of Success

Holding steady

Our Sustainable Development Goals

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

Our overarching goals are to meet Scholars where they are in their computer skills, cultivate their desire for technology training, and help them identify a clear pathway to a family-sustaining career that pays a livable wage. We believe technology education enables Scholars to seek economic advancement, proactively invest in their future, and define their own success.

Byte Back alleviates poverty by providing adult learners with a clear pathway to a family-sustaining career. Within a year, adult learners can advance from no or minimal digital skills to earning certifications for IT or Administrative living-wage careers.

When combined with our job readiness and career services supports, Byte Back's courses give adults the tools and supported needed for educational and career success. Careers enable our alumni to build generational wealth and enter the middle class.

As a licensed post-secondary educational institution, Byte Back offers digital literacy courses and industry-recognized IT certification training programs to broaden students' employment opportunities and place them into living wage careers. We have over 700 enrollments annually at over 20 community sites. Over the last 20+ years, Byte Back's staff has developed its own training curriculum, specifically designed to help students advance along a career pathway, from beginner to industry-recognized certification, and into careers that use technology

Byte Back's innovative approach to training was recently recognized by WeWork with two Creator Awards and a major grant from TD Bank to begin offering programs in Baltimore and explore national expansion. The organization's work is garnering attention from media outlets as they turn to us as a thought leader in digital inclusion and workforce development. Highlights from 2018 include: articles in DC tech blogs Technical.ly DC and DC Inno and coverage by publications including CitiLab, Washington Business Journal, and Washingtonian.

Recent outcomes include:
• 57 graduates obtained employment in 2019, increasing average annual earnings by more than $23,000. That's $1.4 million in total added annual income.
• 534 learners across training levels
• 4,620 hours of classes taught

Financials

Byte Back
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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Connect with nonprofit leaders

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lock

Connect with nonprofit leaders

Subscribe

Build relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.

  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.

Byte Back

Board of directors
as of 11/17/2023
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

Ms. Desy Osunsade

Imaginable Futures

Term: 2018 - 2024

John Crain

452 Consulting

Jacqueline Kazil

Rebellion Defense

Desy Osunsade

Imaginable Futures

Chris Hagood

Kudos Strategies

Chris Arabia

TD Bank

Shanaz Chowdhery

Emeritus

Brenda Shelman

retired, Byte Back graduate

Michelle Larkin

SOL Engineering Services

Johnny Ray Austin

Till, Inc.

Kareem Aaron

Noraye

Matthew Hearn

HNTB

Melissa Turcios

DLA Piper

Nicole Camarillo

Rebellion Defense

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? No
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 11/17/2023
info Candid has made improvements to the race and ethnicity options.

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

The organization's leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
Black/African American
Gender identity
Female, Not transgender (cisgender)

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

 

Sexual orientation

Disability

Equity strategies

Last updated: 09/30/2020

GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more

Data
  • We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
  • We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
  • We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
  • We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
  • We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
  • We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
  • We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
Policies and processes
  • We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
  • We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
  • We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
  • We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
  • We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
  • We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
  • We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.