Justice Through Code

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

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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 Center for Social Enterprise at the Columbia Business School.

Our Job-to-Career Lifecycle of Opportunity

The Foundation

During The Foundation, participants develop the skills necessary for jobs in the 21st-century workforce. Through 7 weeks and 135 hours of content, participants develop the foundation to begin the next steps in their journey from job to career. Course topics include building habits, organization, communication, understanding and working with data, mastering office productivity tools, and the foundations of programming.

Exploring Tech Career Pathways

The 6-week Exploring Tech Career Pathways program dives deep into the life of junior software engineers and data analysts by teaching participants the foundational computer science and programming concepts in Python that are used in both career pathways. While gaining this exposure and knowledge, participants prepare for the programs culminating achievement--the technical assessment--which is required for entry into our flagship program.

The Flagship

During The Flagship programs, participants develop the skills to enter into apprenticeships and early career roles in Software Engineering and Data Analytics. In the Software Engineering track, participants advance their technical skills and gain experience with Python, Django, HTML, CSS, GitHub, data structures and algorithms, and technical interviewing as they work towards their culminating achievement--collaborative software or data analytics.

The Charting a Path Forward With Business Schools and Corporations Conference

"Charting a Path Forward," organized by the Business Roundtable; Tamer Center for Social Enterprise at Columbia Business School; Justice Through Code at Columbia University; and Second Chance Business Coalition, co-chaired by JPMorgan Chase and Eaton Corporation, will explore labor market trends and the role that corporations and business schools can play in educating the business community and future leaders on the benefits of second chance employment. The conference will bring together business leaders, faculty, administrators, and scholars from business schools, and directly impacted individuals. Participants will hear from leading CEOs on the business motivation for second-chance hiring and the practical steps chief human resources officers (CHRO) have taken to develop and implement second-chance employment programs. Together, panelists will highlight leading examples of the work of state governors and business schools in providing individuals with a criminal record with pathways to sustainable employment.

The Business Case for Second Chance Employment - Conference Flyer

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