Expanding Opportunities In Tech: Cyndi DeLira Rendon

Cyndi DeLira-Rendon is a Westside leader who saw the immense career and growth potential around us. 

“Technology is ingrained in everything that we use and we shouldn't only be the users of technology, but the builders,” she said. 

Cyndi realized the potential of technological careers by entering the field herself – and decided to take action to expand access to this promising field. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Cyndi transitioned into the tech field as she searched for remote jobs that allowed her to work from home. Cyndi was a young, single mom, so she understood the need for work that provided flexibility to be both a caretaker and successful professional.

When she discovered jobs in the tech industry existed, she also discovered how many of her skills were valuable in the tech industry. As a young mom, she juggled responsibilities as a mother and student while overcoming a cancer diagnosis at age 22. These experiences helped her develop strong organization and communication skills.

After living in the Westside for nearly a decade, Cindy knows skills like communication, innovation and problem-solving are abundant among her Westside neighbors. They are also pivotal to starting careers in the tech industry that don’t immediately require a coding or technology background, she said. 

“There are lots of opportunities for people here on the Westside, whether it's in sales or project management because the nature of our community is to speak with each other,” she said.

Her advice for anyone interested in the industry is to explore all the opportunities, find roles that interest them and talk to people in those jobs to learn about their journeys. At the same time, she encourages anyone, especially Westsiders, to look at their experience and the skills they already have. 

“We're out, we're exploring things, we're figuring out new ways to do the same thing because of the lack of resources. That sparks innovation that many people don't think they have,” she said.

Cyndi had a background in dental hygiene and experience as an interior designer when she transitioned into the tech industry. Her skills allowed her to become a project manager for a legal software company. 

But that was just the start of her journey. 

Determined to improve access to programming that develops technological skills and provides access to jobs in the tech industry, she joined Code Your Dreams, a nonprofit preparing youth and adults from diverse backgrounds to enter tech careers. As the nonprofit’s head of impact, she has volunteered at the Boys and Girls Club in Garfield Park and has served as a mentor and advocate for inclusion in the tech industry.

Increasing access to these career opportunities goes beyond providing a stable career – it also gives groups like single moms or people with different abilities the ability to succeed personally and professionally, she said. 

With Code Your Dreams, she helped organize one of the largest accessibility hackathons in partnership with Google and the nonprofit Deaf Kids Code. At this event, high school and university students, technology experts and people with different abilities work together to create technology-based solutions for the challenges people with different abilities face. 

“It sparks that conversation on how we can be more innovative with the sort of technology that we're building,” she said.

Last year, one of the teams proposed creating a medical alert necklace that could provide health alerts to people who cannot use a watch due to physical or mental disabilities, she recalls. 

In 2019, she co-founded CoderHeroes, a learning platform for children to learn coding skills through high-quality, bilingual teaching resources that are culturally responsive. The platform

CoderHeroes allows children as young as kindergarteners to learn the basics of coding, design and build apps, helping them learn essential skills and prepare for technological careers from a very early age. But her mission goes beyond, she is preparing the next generation of bilingual tech innovators. 

Increasing access to the tech industry is key to economic and professional growth, as well as job security. Only 6% of employees in the tech giant company Google were Latino and 4% were Black, according to Google’s 2021 Diversity Annual Report. 

As Cindy has learned, technology transformed her life – allowing her to transform her community.  

Thanks to a career in the tech industry, she has access to work benefits that improve her quality of life and financial future. She has time she can dedicate to self-care and her projects to increase access to the tech industry. She has exposure to different careers. She can help create more responsive, inclusive and accessible technology. 

Throughout this journey, Cyndi has learned to push herself outside of her comfort zone, to be able to advocate for what she needs and challenge herself to explore new things. In turn, she can now “invite other people in” to share that knowledge. 

She hopes her message can easily resonate with many Westsiders.

“No matter where you're at, things can change rapidly, whether within a few months or even a year. And you just have to not be afraid to accept that challenge or charter that unknown territory,” she said.