MINNEAPOLIS — Ini Augustine is in a room the size of a closet, going through wires in a network cabinet and labeling ports.
"This is kind of my happy place," says Augustine, laughing. "I just nerd out on this stuff. I love it."
Augustine remembers the job that got her interested in technology. At the age of 17, she worked commercial sales for Dell in Nashville. It included a month-long boot camp.
"At the end of that boot camp you have to be able to disassemble a computer, reassemble it, press the start button, and have it work. They give you two tries and if you're not successful, they walk you off the premises," Augustine recalled. "Yes, very intense."
It led her to a career in tech. When the pandemic hit, Augustine started fundraising to get laptops to kids who were distance learning.
"Kids were signing themselves up to get free laptops through us; kids were going to McDonald's; kids were at the library for hours just trying to connect to internet; they were going to school on their cell phones. They were not being met halfway. We, as the adults, we were failing them," Augustine said.
Then George Floyd was murdered. In response to the pandemic and Floyd's death, Augustine started the program Project Nandi.
"Through that program, we deliver laptops, food and resources to families of color that have children in K-12 education," Augustine said. "I provided them with the things that they said they needed which were like scholarships for internet... food in their homes, laptops. Then they wanted to learn how to use the devices, how to do Zoom meetings, how to do e-mail, how to apply for jobs online. So that's kind of how I started moving more into the digital skills and digital literacy arena."
But Augustine was aware that it would be tough depending solely on donations and grants. In order to sustain her work, she launched Technologist Computers — a technical support company based in north Minneapolis.
"Technologist computers is a social enterprise that balances profit with purpose. So we sell IT services like technical support and cyber security, and then reinvest in community programs," Augustine said.
Besides Project Nandi, she runs Way of the Root Farm (teaching kids where their food comes from) and Joy on Film (teaching kids mindfulness through capturing photos of things that make them happy).
"I wanted to show my daughter that no matter what was happening in the world, that you could pursue your dreams and that you could do good for your community," she said.
Augustine serves as an advisory member on the governor's broadband task force. She's also a consultant for Elevate Hennepin, offering small businesses in Hennepin County 25 hours of consulting services for free.
"My personal passion is closing the digital divide," Augustine said. "You know, it's a buzzword. It doesn't really have a whole lot of meaning until you see what the impact is on people not having access to computers, not having access to Internet."
While there's less attention on the digital divide now, compared to during the pandemic, the disparities still exist. Which is why Augustine continues her work.
"Besides being a mom, it's the thing that I'm most proud of. Just being a Black woman in technology and showing other Black and Brown kids, other Black and Brown girls, that you can do this. Technology is not reserved just for the Zuckerbergs and the Musks. You can do it, too. Technology is for me, but technology is for you, too."
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