PHILADELPHIA — Today, Mayor Jim Kenney and the Department of Commerce announced the sixth round of StartupPHL Call for Ideas grantees. The Call for Ideas grant program funds innovative and exciting proposals that bolster Philadelphia’s continually expanding entrepreneurial ecosystem, while providing access and opportunities to all Philadelphians. The most recent round of Call for Ideas focused on applicants whose initiatives help connect youth to technology.

“As we move toward an increasingly technology-based economy, it is vital that our young people are prepared with the skills they need,” said Mayor Jim Kenney. “I am eager to see the impact of our latest Call for Ideas grants as the programs they support help youth across the city develop the important skills required to take on the jobs of today and tomorrow.”

The latest round of StartupPHL Call for Ideas provides $100,000 in funding to five organizations:

• Coded by Kids ($17,500) – Coded by Kids provides free tech education, industry exposure and mentorship to children. Their grant will be used to support a new program, First Draft Studios, a teen-run digital design and development shop where teens will work in small teams to design and build websites and apps for local nonprofits or small businesses.
• Onyx Valley ($20,000) – Kyree Holmes developed Onyx Valley as part of the first cohort of the Institute of Hip-Hop Entrepreneurship to provide young people of color with training and connections to tech companies. The organization will offer engaging events to introduce children to design thinking, as well as workshops for college students that provide technical and professional skills training. The workshops, focused on the User Experience (UX) field, will also connect participants to successful individuals and companies in the UX industry.
• Philadelphia Children’s Foundation ($30,000) – The Philadelphia Children’s Foundation (PCF) supports Philadelphia public schools by installing internet-ready computers in classrooms and publicly accessible locations, outfitting school libraries with books, teaching 3D printing, and more. By combining an existing equipment refurbishing program with computer literacy training, PCF aims to create a sustainable model for in-house tech support teams made up of 4^th and 5^th grade students at participating schools.
• TechGirlz ($17,500) – TechGirlz introduces middle school girls to cutting edge technology education at the critical ages of 11-14. Their grant will fund a series of “TechShopz in a Box,” TechGirlz’s signature open-source workshops, to be held at nine branches of the Free Library of Philadelphia.
• VietLead ($15,000) – VietLead is a grassroots organization working with the Vietnamese community in Philadelphia and South Jersey. They will use their funding to support a new initiative called Youth Engagement for Social Sustainability (YESS). The YESS initiative will teach young people how to use technology to capture and analyze community stories and needs. It will also support youth as they attempt to address these community issues through social entrepreneurship.

All applications were reviewed by a selection committee comprised of representatives from the City of Philadelphia and members of the entrepreneurial community. The first StartupPHL Call for Ideas was launched in October 2012 as part of the larger StartupPHL initiative. Thirty-one Call for Ideas grants have been awarded to date.

StartupPHL is a collaborative effort between the City of Philadelphia’s Department of Commerce and the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC). The StartupPHL initiative encompasses a range of programs including the Call for Ideas grants, PIDC’s StartupPHL Seed + Angel Funds, and several measures to enhance visibility and connectivity of the startup community. The initiative aims to make our city a more attractive environment to launch and grow a business by investing in entrepreneurs who bring energy, ideas and vitality to Philadelphia, as well as further enabling the existing entrepreneurial talent that resides in the city’s different neighborhoods to flourish.

For more information on StartupPHL, visit: startupphl.com.