Dell Learning Partner: Center for Digital Inclusion

In the 20th century, it is possible for a team of young girls to funnel their life experiences into a good idea — such as helping bullied teens — and then make it happen in a way most fitting for technology-savvy youth: arm them with a downloadable app for fighting back without violence. From initial brainstorming to wireframe sketching on paper and from design concepting to actual application development, the Apps for Good winning team 2-the-res-Q matched their own talent with that of a distinct UK program, providing mentoring, funding and development support to turn their idea into a working app. That app is now downloadable on the android market for free, by anyone looking for advice when facing bullying.

Dell believes this is an example of the true power of our technology and expertise in action. Dell and our learning partner the Center for Digital Inclusion (CDI), an organization focusing on transforming low-income communities through information and communication technologies, share a common goal of making technology more accessible to resource-challenged youth. Dell’s giving program and our learning partnerships are designed to give others the power to do more through Dell’s donation of technology, expertise and employee volunteers.

Established in 2008, the U.K. division of CDI established its Apps for Good program on the unique idea to provide specific training for low-income youth to use, design and develop mobile and web applications that address community needs. This training equips them with in-demand skills to truly change their lives and our world.

“Apps for Good has opened my eyes to many different aspects of business which I had never considered before, like social enterprise.” Justis Justin, 24, Apps for Good graduate. “My plan now is to use all the skills that I've learned to develop other app ideas which could both benefit society and also be profitable.”

Apps for Good students leave the program with knowledge and confidence that goes beyond the technology applications themselves. Teachers report that the graduates show an increased willingness to cooperate and demonstrate stronger leadership skills. For example, one Apps for Good alumnus with a new business initiative organized a fundraising effort to set her idea in motion. Apps for Good has helped other graduates turn away from troubled pasts, giving them the skills they needed to find work producing digital content for charities and mobile app companies.

For CDI, the Dell learning grant has enabled the growth of the Apps for Good program from a single school in 2010 in the South London borough of Lambeth to 1,300 students in 45 schools across the U.K. only one year later.

A partnership for success: Dell volunteers and technology donations

As part of Dell’s employee engagement program, Dell team members have the opportunity to volunteer and offer their expertise as judges on the quarterly app review panel called Dragons’ Den and in an Apps for Good feature shown on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)’s “Blue Peter” children’s program.

“Dell engages in the program on all levels — financial, technology and volunteer expertise — from team building and market research to building a business model and presenting your findings,” said Debbie Forster, interim chief executive officer for CDI Europe — Apps for Good. “The partnership has been powerful in broadcasting what we do more widely and encouraging student participation.”

Claire Ramage, a Dell employee and giving champion, has volunteered as a review panel judge and discussed the benefits the Apps for Good program provides to both students and volunteers. “Young people think about problems in a different way,” said Claire. “It’s inspiring to get their perspective because they come up with solutions you never would have imagined. The students consistently surprise me with the professionalism and courage they develop, the girls in particular.”

Claire is an example of how we welcome our partners, like CDI, to leverage the know-how of Dell staff and volunteers to get the help, advice and tools they need to build a framework for success.

With any learning partner, Dell goes beyond providing state-of-the art Dell technology and also offers the expertise to implement it. Following a workshop to determine the Dell technology that best fits CDI’s needs, Dell provided one flat screen monitor, three Vostro™ laptops and 267 Dell Streak tablets for the Apps for Good program, which offer large screens to make it easy for teams to review their work together.

Course benefits

As the Apps for Good website explains, the course takes students through an entrepreneurial process whereby they identify challenges they face before designing a way of fixing it with a mobile app. They then present their ideas to professional application designers and developers, an invaluable exercise for building self-confidence.

Course graduates have created an app that enables young people to learn more about attending university and another app that helps young musicians find a studio. In 2011 alone, students generated nearly 300 app ideas. The Apps for Good website features information about students’ app ideas, including videos of team members and links to download the apps from the Android Market.

Our partnership to continue program success

Starting in 2012, Dell will further engage with the Apps for Good program through new volunteer opportunities at Garth Hill College near Dell’s U.K. offices in Bracknell. With a dedicated school so close, Dell team members will be able to share their expertise on a more regular basis.

Dell and CDI continue to innovate the Apps of Good program, focusing most recently on virtual mentoring via Skype to allow volunteers to share their expertise with students across the country.