Code Platoon Receives Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation Grant

Chicago, Illinois – December 4, 2019 – Code Platoon, a nonprofit working to transform Chicagoland veterans and military spouses into professional software developers through an immersive, educational boot camp and mentorship program, today announced it has received an $8,000 grant from the Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation.

The Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation awards grants each year to organizations, such as Code Platoon, with a focus area on digital inclusion, skills for the digital economy, innovation and entrepreneurship, and volunteerism and service, with an emphasis on programs serving diverse communities. Code Platoon will use these mission critical grant funds to thoughtfully and meaningfully grow its program to include increased professional certifications for every Code Platoon student.

“Veterans and military spouses step forward to serve our country, and they deserve our help. The impact of this generous grant from the Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation will help us create more opportunities for our students to learn and grow as software developers,” said Rodrigo Levy, founder and executive director of Code Platoon.

“Comcast NBCUniversal is grateful to our military community for its dedication to our country,” said Gwendolyn McNutt, Comcast’s regional manager of External Affairs.  “We’re proud to support Code Platoon and its efforts to help local veterans and military spouses transition into the civilian workforce with technical training and career placement.”

About Code Platoon

Based in Chicago, Illinois, Code Platoon provides software coding training to help local veterans and military spouses find meaningful careers as professional software developers. While some veterans and military spouses do have four year degrees, the only requirements of enrollment are a deep desire to become a professional software developer, a positive work ethic, and a tremendous amount of tenacity. Each student is eligible to receive a scholarship that covers about 80% of their tuition making this career path affordable and attainable. Code Platoon also offers extra scholarships to women veterans who join the boot camp as they are historically underrepresented in technology based careers. Students can also use their GI Bill benefits to complete our program. The program consists of 12-15 students per class who spend 60-80 hours a week together for 15 weeks. Students are taught the Python and Ruby on Rails technology stacks, which are increasingly popular in the software development field. Instruction is a carefully curated mix of lectures, advanced coding training, and team projects, frequently culminating in a local paid internship. For more information on Code Platoon, please visit Codeplatoon.org. 

About Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation

The Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation continues the work of the foundations founded by Comcast Corporation and NBCUniversal to provide charitable support to qualified non-profit organizations. The Foundation invests in programs intended to have a positive, sustainable impact on the communities we serve. Its mission is to empower communities to thrive by helping to provide access to technology, relevant digital skills and training, and inspiring volunteerism and service. The Foundation invests in programs intended to have a positive, sustainable impact on the communities we serve.  More information about how Comcast NBCUniversal supports the communities it serves is available at comcast.com/community.