Ctrl+Shift is Oklahoma City’s first full-time academy for software and web development.
We’re partnering with established groups and institutions to create a comprehensive
full-stack curriculum that allows our students to gain depth of knowledge that will make
them valuable employees in our local tech community and beyond.
Economic Opportunity
Financial abuse occurs in 99% of domestic violence situations, and is often cited by survivors as the main reason they stayed with or returned to an abusive partner.
Financial abuse can take many forms but includes: not letting the victim work, withholding access to money (including the victim’s own paychecks), theft, and forcing the victim to take on the abuser’s debt.
Even after the victim leaves, abusers may continue the financial abuse by refusing to pay or evading child support and forcing the victim into expensive ongoing litigation in family courts. These all have serious long-term financial impact.
Victims fleeing violence need financial resources. Not just short term financial support, shelters, food pantries — they need a long-term financial plan to support themselves and their children so they are not dependent on the abuser. They need career opportunities.
Representation
WHAT WOMEN BRING TO THE TABLE
DIVERSE IDEAS & UNIQUE SOLUTIONS
Decades of research show that bringing people from diverse backgrounds to the table in business leads to increased innovation and enhanced problem solving.
INCREASED PROFITABILITY
In Peterson Institute for International Economics working paper researchers found that gender diversity translated to a 15 percent increase in profitability on average.
MORE QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES
It’s no secret there just aren’t enough good developers to go around. Bringing more talent to the local marketplace improves outcomes for businesses.
Our Beliefs
- All people deserve to live a life free from violence and abuse
- Financial independence is a stepping stone to ending the cycle of abuse for a survivor and their children
- Education and employment opportunities empower survivors to develop financial independence, escape poverty
and begin building wealth for their children - Careers in software and web development are accessible, rewarding and financially promising
- Survivors of violence and abuse have unique skills that make them excellent candidates for careers in software and web development
- Building diversity and inclusion in the developer community is both desirable and necessary
- Engaging employers with survivors can, over time, improve community response to violence and abuse
we always need help.
contribute creatively
What technologies are you teaching?
We’re primarily teaching HTML, CSS, Javascript, and SQL. Students will also learn how to build apps using React, and gain some familiarity with NoSQL databases like MongoDB. During the final weeks of class, students will do independent study on the tech stack they’ll be using in their internship.
how is the project funded?
This project was started with funds from an anonymous donation. We expect to need donations for the first couple of years, but anticipate revenue from paid participants and a pay it forward model for scholarship students will eventually allow us to be self-sustaining.
who can participate?
This program is designed to give a hand up to survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and other types of violence and abuse. To help fund the project, applications are also open to others who would like to pursue careers in software and web development. The cost is $7,500.
What Other Skills Are you teaching?
Our classroom will be run like your typical dev team. Students will use tools like Slack and Trello for communication and project management, push code to Git repositories, practice agile methodologies and iterative development in their projects, and create projects from provided designs and requirements documents.
What else makes Ctrl+shift unique?
Because of the unique population we work with, we ensure that our instructors are trained in trauma-informed practices, offer and encourage students to access therapy services through Palomar, and teach personal and professional skills ranging from personal finance, safety planning, and soft skills.
This program is 6 months long, with 4 months in class, and 2 months in internship placement prior to graduation.