Two Haverhill High School graduates, who continued their studies at Northern Essex Community College, have been chosen for selective fellowships focused on addressing the underrepresentation of Black and Latinx talent in science, technology, engineering and math.
Alejandro Brito, a 2015 Haverhill High School graduate, who graduated from Northern Essex’s Computer Information Science Transfer Program in December of 2020, and Sebastian Rosario, who graduated from Haverhill High School in 2019 and is now enrolled in Northern Essex’s Computer Information Science: Networking & Security Program, were both chosen for the New England Venture Capital Association’s Hack.Diversity Fellowship.
“At Hack, we look for individuals that are passionate about breaking into the innovation industry and eager to grow; and Alejandro and Sebastian are no exception. We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome these two outstanding members into the Hack.Diversity family,” said Robert Vance, program manager.
Through its fellowship program, Hack.Diversity helps individuals, primarily those who identify as Black or Latinx, to launch careers as software engineers, IT professionals and data analysts within the innovation economy. Since its inception in 2017, 160 fellows have been selected and placed in more than 30 companies.
As part of the eight-month fellowship program, the two will have access to mentors, professional development workshops, an expansive alumni network and full-time, paid, summer internships with Boston’s fastest growing technology companies.
Born in the Dominican Republic, Brito came to the United States with his mother when he was 7 years old. He has always loved computers, saying, “Many students going to college out of high school are uncertain about what kind of career they see a future in, but I was not one of them…I have always had a deep passion for anything tech-related.”
Calling himself “unabashedly Dominican,”, Rosario has always been interested in puzzles. “Tinkering with things and figuring out the mechanisms that make it function always captured me for hours at a time,” he said. “If I could figure out the rules of a system, the entertainment for me was figuring out ways to game those rules or circumvent them.”
Rosario plans to pursue a career in cyber-security.