Justice Through Code

Unlocking Potential for the 80+ Million Americans with a Conviction History.

A world where every person, regardless of past convictions or incarceration can access life-sustaining and meaningful careers.

We are working to make this vision a reality through our technical and professional career development accelerators.

Our Mission: We educate and nurture talent with conviction histories to create a more just and diverse workforce. We increase workplace equity through partnerships that educate and prepare teams to create supportive pathways to careers that end the cycle of poverty that contributes to incarceration and recidivism.

JTC is jointly offered by Columbia University’s Center for Justice, and the Tamer Institute for Social Enterprise and Climate Change

Our Job-to-Career Lifecycle of Opportunity

The Foundation

Curriculum: Our intensive 10-week program equips you with the skills needed for today’s workforce. You’ll develop modern office skills, preparing you for employment and long-term career growth. The curriculum covers intermediate digital literacy, modern office skills, data basics, communications, and proficiency in generative AI tools. The program concludes with a group Capstone project. Please note: This program does not include programming.
Applicant Assessment: You should possess basic digital literacy skills before applying. The entrance assessment evaluates your proficiency in email management, file organization, internet navigation, computer basics, productivity software, problem-solving, and mathematical skills. You’ll also need to complete a Google Workspace certificate program before the cohort launch.

Tech Pathways

Curriculum: This 20-week program immerses you in digital problem-solving through computer science. You’ll cover CS Foundations, HTML with Tailwind, JavaScript and the MERN stack, GitHub version control, and complete a group Capstone project. This program prepares you for The Flagship program or referral to partner programs.
Applicant Assessment: You should have prerequisite skills to ensure you’re ready for the rigorous curriculum. The assessment evaluates your computer literacy, mathematical proficiency, problem-solving skills, exposure to basic programming concepts, and commitment and motivation.

The Flagship

Curriculum: This 9-month program develops skills for apprenticeships and early career roles in Software Engineering. You’ll gain experience with JavaScript and Python, full-stack web development, and complete a group Capstone project. The curriculum also includes data science, machine learning and AI, DevOps, career mapping, and technical interviewing. You’ll culminate your experience by contributing to open-source software products.
Applicant Assessment: This program requires advanced skills due to the fast-paced curriculum. The entrance assessment evaluates your proficiency in JavaScript (or another modern programming language), understanding of HTML and CSS, experience with version control systems, mathematics, basic knowledge of data structures and algorithms, database skills, and strong problem-solving abilities.

Donations, Sponsorship, and Hiring Our Graduates

Want to join us in our fight for equitable and sustainable careers for the formerly incarcerated? Want to help with our goal to reduce recidivism? Looking to hire one of our graduates for contract work or to work for your company?

Please email j [email protected] to learn more about sponsorship, and hiring our graduates.

If you're interested in supporting our students by donating to the program, please donate to the Justice Through Code gift account.

Justice Through Code

Justice Through Code

A world where every person, regardless of past convictions or incarceration can access life-sustaining and meaningful careers.

We are working to make this vision a reality through our technical and professional career development accelerators.

Our Job-to-Career Lifecycle of Opportunity

Donations, Sponsorship, and Hiring Our Graduates

OUR PARTNERS