![\"Flatiron](\"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/12\/Flatiron_School_1.jpg?resize=1024%2C683\")
The move will mean big changes for Flatiron School, which up until now has not expand past its main location directly in front of the iconic Charging Bull statue not far from Wall Street.<\/p>\n
\u201cUp until now we\u2019ve been very good about not sacrificing quality, not doing things until we\u2019re ready,\u201d said Enbar. \u201cNow we\u2019re ready.\u201d<\/p>\n
Enbar expects his team of about 64 educators, engineers, and innovators are excited to begin offering in-person classes out of WeWork locations and online courses to WeWork\u2019s membership of more than 150,000 people.<\/p>\n
The school\u2019s online portal, called Learn, makes it easy for students to connect either online or in person. Enbar says he foresees it being a way for WeWork employees and members to reach out to others in the same program.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can imagine a student walking into a WeWork in Los Angeles,\u201d said Enbar. \u201cWhen they open up their computer, they\u2019re notified that three other students in the building studying the same thing. They can create a study group right there on the spot.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Technology isn\u2019t important\u2014people are\u2019<\/h2>\n
Enbar and Flombaum founded Flatiron School in 2012 after discovering their shared interest in transforming education. A graduate of Cornell University and Harvard Business School, Enbar wondered if the debt students rack up in college is worth it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought a lot about education, specifically the return on your investment,\u201d Enbar said. \u201cThe price of higher education has increased faster than anything else in this country. At the same time, average salaries are flat or down, graduation rates are flat or down. No other industry has seen this massive increase in price along with a drastic decrease in outcome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Flombaum was a kid who had founded his high school\u2019s computer club, only to be kicked out for spending too much time there. He dropped out of college at 21 when a hedge fund recruited him to be a programmer. After a few years, he left that job and started teaching people how to code.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a hard time with engineers who are really into coding and forget about the people,\u201d he said. \u201cProgramming, to me, was never about the technical stuff. Technology isn\u2019t important\u2014people are.\u201d<\/p>\n
Without realizing it, Flombaum was building the model that would eventually become Flatiron School.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery time I taught a class, I would take the three best students and have them work with me on contracts I had with these large companies,\u201d said Flombaum. \u201cWhen I gave the work to my clients, I\u2019d say that my student did much of the work and that they should hire them. I knew I was working up to something, but I didn\u2019t know what it was yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018We had to make it more accessible\u2019<\/h2>\n
Flatiron School was a completely new model. The 15-week coding bootcamp costs significantly less than a traditional college education, but it provides enough hands-on experience that graduates can snag good-paying jobs in the teach field.<\/p>\n
They knew that they had hit when they realized, soon after launching, that the school\u2019s acceptance rate was less than 10 percent. But at the same time they didn\u2019t want Flatiron School to become an elite institution, open just to those who could afford it. They wanted it to be accessible to everyone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe knew that to be really be impactful, we had to make it more accessible,\u201d said Enbar. \u201cEducation shouldn\u2019t just be for those who can afford it. So we partnered with the City of New York to reach out to low-income populations.\u201d<\/p>\n
They also worked hard to ensure that women\u2014often underrepresented at coding schools\u2014were at least half of the student body. Enbar said that well over half of their employees are women.<\/p>\n
Enbar and Flombaum said that they wanted to make a difference in the world, so they partnered with Re:Coded to teach computer skills to Syrian refugees living in refugee camps in Iraq.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an amazing program,\u201d said Enbar. \u201cIf they can get remote jobs that pay well, they can rebuild their lives wherever they end up.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Our missions and our values are the same\u2019<\/h2>\n
Enbar said that WeWork\u2019s commitment to giving back\u2014from sending staffers to Houston to help dig out debris after Hurricane Harvey to sponsoring a Halloween party for children in Harlem\u2014is part of what convinced them that a partnership was a great idea.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you look at our missions and our values, they\u2019re the same as WeWork,\u201d said Enbar. \u201cThat\u2019s part of what got us excited.\u201d<\/p>\n
Flombaum said that he knew the two companies should join forces that day when Neumann and his team attended his lecture on love.<\/p>\n
\u201cBased on their questions afterward, it was clear they understood that this was a different perspective of teaching,\u201d Flombaum said. \u201cWe were teaching in a manner that really develops that sense of love and connection. And they really got it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Photos by Katelyn Perry<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Adam Enbar and Avi Flombaum launched their coding bootcamp because \u2018technology isn\u2019t important\u2014people are\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1715,"featured_media":3000001266,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43903,43912],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-stories","category-employee-spotlight"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n