On May 17 Acronis’ partner, the Yellow Ribbon Fund, hosted its biennial Charity Gala at The Ritz-Carlton Millenia in Singapore. The dinner event raised $1,800,000 for the fund to support the development and implementation of rehabilitation and reintegration programmes for ex-offenders and their families, especially for their children.
During this gala dinner, Acronis marked a successful pilot year of a joint programme with the Yellow Ribbon Fund and the Acronis Foundation. The programme is aimed at increasing the employability of people with prior convictions by providing them with IT skills that will help them and their families rebuild their lives.
The YRF-Acronis IT Skills Programme offers certified IT training to prison inmates: a one-month course on MS Office, including master classes on CV and email composition, job interviewing, online training and useful tips. This year the programme will also offer a certified Web Design course.
Singapore has one of the lowest recidivism rates in the world and the solutions that further reduce that rate are the best way to fight recurring crime and minimize overall costs for taxpayers. The privately held Acronis is doing its part as a corporate citizen by dedicating resources to the Acronis Foundation, a non-profit it established last year to support programmes that spread knowledge. The Foundation’s programme with the Yellow Ribbon Fund was among the first initiatives funded.
During the first year, Acronis Foundation and the Yellow Ribbon Fund managed to organize two separate pilot groups. Two months after the release, 76% of students already secured jobs. The IT skills course aims to make ex-offenders eligible for more qualified jobs where they can grow professionally and develop their skills over time.
“The programme’s first year results are inspiring and we’re grateful to our partner and all of the volunteers who contribute their time and effort to help us rebuild these lives of these guys. Our core belief is that knowledge should be available to all and the YRF-Acronis IT Skills Programme is the perfect way to turn that belief into action,” commented Serguei Beloussov (SB), Acronis Founder and CEO, the initiator of the programme.
This year Acronis Foundation and the Yellow Ribbon Fund are planning to scale-up and organize five to six training groups – a total of up to 90 graduates will complete their training in various halfway houses across the country.
“Unusual to see private Singapore companies like Acronis go above and beyond to help us increase the ex-offenders’ chances of securing better jobs and turning their life around,” said Suresh Damodara, the official spokesperson for the programme.
When establishing this initiative in 2018 as part of its 15-year anniversary, it embodied the company’s core belief in the ultimate value of knowledge. Acronis put that belief into action by committing at least $1 million in cash and services over the next 10 years to the YRF-Acronis IT Skills Programme.
Acronis is proud of its Singaporean roots, which is why the country in which it was founded is still home to its international headquarters. That is also why Acronis is committed to supporting community projects driven by the government and local non-profit organizations.
