With financial and technical support from HPC, Computer Underground Railroad Enterprises, Inc., a startup business, has provided more than 270 community residents with computer literacy training since summer 1996. Participants attend 5 hours of lectures and at least 20 hours of tutoring at the Minisink Settlement House's computer lab, learning basic software packages.
Independent projects incorporate everyday life concerns, such as preparing a family budget.
Participants pay no money, but instead agree to tutor two other people in the lab, spreading the benefits of training to more Harlem residents. In another HPC project, CUNY's Baruch College Small Business Lab takes the lead in providing training, counseling, and technical assistance to Harlem residents who want to start their own businesses. The free business development class for residents taught by Baruch faculty introduces potential entrepreneurs to the tools needed to run a business and assists them in developing business plans. HPC recruited 46 students for the first class in April 1996, held during 12 free 3-hour night sessions, with ongoing consultation available. Forty-four students graduated in the spring, and a second class of 42 graduated in the fall session.