Earthling

Note: The below is an archived entry from Earthling, formerly EarthLink's official blog. The blog itself has been decommissioned and is no longer updated, and comments are trackbacks are no longer accepted.

It feels like much longer than a month and a week since I attended the birth of BrainJams New Orleans. In that time the group has given rise to a fully-functioning ad-hoc team complete with project management, design, marketing, and technology expertise. It's pretty amazing when you think about the fact that for the most part we were all strangers to each other a couple of months ago. And it's neat that a bunch of well-intentioned discussion at a conference is resulting in actual project work that will help a business recover from Katrina's aftermath.

The current class at Sclafani (from Chris Schultz's Flickr set)

As our first project, we're working with the Sclafani Cooking School in Metairie, LA, to help them get the number of incoming students back near pre-Hurricane Katrina levels. As BrainJams chief Chris Heuer pointed out on a phone call this morning, "The traditions of great food and great restaurants are at the heart of the culture of New Orleans, and the Sclafani School plays a vital role in continuing those traditions."

It's a great program. Most enrollees have their 4-week education completely paid for by grants and scholarships, and they work hard to place their graduates in jobs that begin as soon as they complete their training. Sclafani also tracks their graduates' progress as they transition into the workforce, to provide ongoing support and career counseling.