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Community programs · Free to participants

The other half of the work.

A share of every Palanca engagement funds free technology programs in Greater New Orleans.

Built for the neighborhoods where access is scarcest. Programs launch as host sites and partners are confirmed.

Explore the programs
Illustration of an instructor and an adult learner working together at a laptop
AI-generated illustration. Shown to describe the program experience; not a photograph of participants.

Why it’s built this way

More people ready for what comes next.

The programs are the reason the business is built the way it is.

The businesses we work with need people who can use modern tools, and the programs help prepare them. Many of those businesses sit in the same neighborhoods the programs serve.

Clients see where their share goes. Every Lift Report notes what the program fund supported that quarter.

The programs

Real skills. Room to begin.

All programs are in planning.
Dates and locations will appear here as host sites are confirmed.

Digital Skills for Work

In planning
Who it’s for
Adults heading into the trades or an office job, returning to work, or starting a new chapter.
What it covers
The everyday tools of a modern job: email, scheduling apps, spreadsheets, digital timesheets and invoices, spotting scams, and using AI safely.
How it runs
Short, hands-on series built with workforce and re-entry partners, so graduates arrive ready to use the systems local employers run.

Beignet Bytes

In planning
Who it’s for
Young people trying code for the first time.
What it covers
A few Saturdays of hands-on coding with no experience assumed. Everyone leaves having built a small program that does something useful.
How it runs
Loaner laptops and patient instructors, at libraries and community centers.

Robotics & Maker Stations

In planning
Who it’s for
Kids roughly 8 to 14.
What it covers
Building small machines from kits, learning by taking things apart and putting them back together.
How it runs
After-school sessions at host sites, with all kits and materials provided.
Illustration of students exploring electronics together at a classroom table
AI-generated illustration, not actual program photography.

Host or sponsor

Have a room to lend, or people to hire?

We’re looking for host sites with a room and reliable internet, workforce and re-entry partners, and local employers who want to sponsor a series and meet the people it trains.

Host, sponsor, or partner