ANN ARBOR – Software consultancy Atomic Object is seeking applicants for its Baker & Cook Fellowship.
The annual $2,500 fellowship seeks Washtenaw County BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) high school students who plan to study computer science in college. Each year of their further education, the student receives funding, totaling up to $10,000 over four years.
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Jonah Bailey, Atomic Object managing partner who co-leads the Ann Arbor office, said he came up with the program to address gaps for area computer science students.
”The fellowship provides a meaningful amount of money to cover what traditional scholarships won’t,” Bailey said in a statement. “Scholarships take care of the education but not the person. The $2,500 is cash that goes to the student with no stipulations about how it’s spent; it doesn’t have to be school related.”
Two first-generation BIPOC college students who are pursuing degrees in Ann Arbor have been awarded fellowships by Atomic Object. The program will soon support four students at a time.
In addition to funding, the program provides mentorship meetings once a week from the company. Mentors help guide the fellow through college life and offer advice when applying for internships and planning for their career.
The fellowship is named in honor of Charlie Baker and Tom Cook, local entrepreneurs who launched the Ann Arbor Foundry.
”What was interesting about Baker and Cook was that they were two people from diverse ethnic backgrounds who supported one another’s causes,” Bailey said in a statement. “Though they came long before Atomic was founded, they instituted similar business practices like cash profit sharing—and their company was employee-owned from 1920-1972.
”The fellowship specifically offers resources to students who are racially under-represented in Atomic’s field. We want to make a dent in the world around diversity in technology. We believe a highly lucrative career in tech gives a student the ability to create generational wealth.”
Students can submit their applications on the fellowship page through the end of April. Fellows will be chosen in May, according to a release.