The Hidden Genius Project is on a tear. Like the Golden State Warriors—with which the Oakland, CA-based not-for-profit has partnered on some unique programming for youth—The Hidden Genius Project started making noise in 2012. That’s when five black, male entrepreneurs from Oakland came together to create an organization that would train black boys in technology creation, leadership skills and entrepreneurship.
The Hidden Genius Project is powered by community. Learn how you can plug in at https://t.co/Eh1UIGcGHK and sign up to #volunteer.
— The Hidden Genius Project (@HiddenGeniusPro) February 22, 2018
Nearly six years later, The Hidden Genius Project has put nearly 100 boys through its flagship 15-month intensive program, in which the participants learn to code in multiple languages, garner lessons in database development, entrepreneurship and leadership, and eventually develop full stack engineering projects. More than 3,100 kids have been served across all programs, and twenty high school-aged program graduates have already been trained as youth educators to help the next generation of hidden geniuses step into the light.
Brandon Nicholson, executive director of the organization, says it’s all about meeting the young people where they are—literally and figuratively. That means being physically present in the community, and making forays into the foster care and juvenile justice systems to source participants.
It also means taking the boys’ passions—specifically sports—and demonstrating the ways they can be connected to technology and entrepreneurship.
“It’s important for the young people to understand they possess a great deal of potential, and they have plenty to offer,” says Nicholson. “Yes the odds of playing a single day of professional sports are low, but the larger picture is there’s so many pathways tied to professional sports whether it’s writing about it for Forbes, scouting, marketing, general counsel, everything under the sun. And so much of that integrates technology.
“You don’t have to stop loving sports or stop playing. Just understand there’s these pathways that can help you stay in that space even if you’re not playing someday.”
That’s where the Warriors come in. Over the past two years, The Hidden Genius Project has partnered with the local professional basketball franchise on a number of events for its participants, including a STEM night at Oracle Arena in January and a recent event at Google’s headquarters with special guests Andre Iguodala and JaVale McGee.
“When the Warriors are on the docket, at least in the Bay Area, people are going to be there, so we’ve had a lot of successful events because they’ve been able to bring that drawing power.”
In his efforts to tap the rich veins of opportunity present in and around San Francisco, Nicholson has partnered many other businesses, foundations and organizations. “What we’ve been able to accomplish in the last six years almost, is really on the back of strategic collaboration,” Nicholson tells me. “As we look towards expanding and growing in communities, it’s really going to be about participating in rich communities ecosystems that are [already] there.”
In 2016 I met @BNicholson83 at the @KaporCenter and was eager to figure out how @Uber could partner with @HiddenGeniusPro. Tonight we’re kicking off our yearlong mentorship program at with 20+ young black men from across the country interested in #STEM careers. #DiversityInTech pic.twitter.com/O3Hg6pY4tL
— jordan medina (@jordmedina) February 23, 2018
In addition to the Warriors and Google, other institutions to have thrown their support behind The Hidden Genius Project include Uber, the Ford Family Foundation, the Barry Bonds Family Foundation, the Oakland Unified School District, TEAM Inc. and Kaiser Permanente. Last month during NBA All-Star Weekend, The Hidden Genius Project teamed with Kaiser and TEAM Inc. to put on the Total Health Tech Slam in Los Angeles. Held at the Crenshaw Family YMCA, the Total Health Tech Slam featured interactive activities that demonstrated how technology plays integral roles in NBA statistics, player movement, player wellness and game strategies.
Nicholson lauds Kaiser’s commitment to “total health,” which includes mind, body and spirit. It’s the spirit element that interests Nicholson most. “Total health includes access to opportunity,” he tells me. “Kaiser is great about thinking creatively. The best of who we are really comes from being together as a unit with the Kaisers of the world, and we’re looking to do a lot more of that.”
Most of The Hidden Genius Project’s current programming is in Oakland currently, but the organization has plans to expand into large markets like Atlanta, Chicago and Washington D.C. as well as L.A.
The organization is receiving plaudits from myriad sources. Van Jones, CNN commentator and founder of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, praised The Hidden Genius Project as one of the extraordinary groups “working to open up opportunities for the people that look like those represented in Wakanda”—the fictional African megalopolis at the center the blockbuster film Black Panther. The organization was also invited to Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp in New Orleans.
Had a great time discussing Black culture, power and promise in technology with @karencivil @chamillionaire @mchammer @iddrissandu at #GoogleSoulFest Thx @lifeatgoogle pic.twitter.com/QtVDmznheH
— Brandon Nicholson (@BNicholson83) February 22, 2018
Last month Nicholson also joined MC Hammer and Chamillionaire for a panel conversation on equality social justice and empowerment through technology at the Google SoulFest, an event celebrating the black community's contributions to music, art, culture and tech through a day of demos, talks, and performances.
But Nicholson isn’t interested in simply creating pipelines for black youth into positions at companies like Google. “The entrepreneurial piece is big too to help them actually envision themselves as change agents in their communities, people who can hire from within their communities.” By training former participants to train the new generation and teaching them skills in leadership and entrepreneurship, The Hidden Genius Project is creating something that can sustain itself as it scales.
“We’ve got all those partners but we don’t exist to serve any of them. We exist to serve our communities.”
