Adelante DiverseIT is offering Google IT Support Professional Certifications and several Intro to Tech courses thanks to a $100,000 impact grant from the Encantado Foundation. The funding is designed to provide certification and training for potential STEM workers. Adelante’s DiverseIT team is currently looking for people who have an interest in getting into the tech field or exploring a STEM career. This grant is especially for people who might not have the means to do so. Furthermore, the goal is to increase diversity in the tech field. As a result, people of color, women, and people with disabilities who meet the grant’s diversity are specifically recommended to apply. Course will start in August and September of 2023. People who are interested in these trainings, funded by the Encantado Foundation, should apply now.
What is the Encantado Foundation?
The mission of the Encantado Foundation is to stimulate the development of hire-ready candidates for the STEM field. They particularly focus on cyber security, application development, and IT operations. A big part of their work involves fostering professional development for people who want to be part of the digital workforce. That includes communities who have been underrepresented in tech. Women, people of color, native people, and people with disabilities included.
The Encantado Foundation was formed by Encantado Technical Solutions, LLC (ETS). ETS is a joint venture of Edgewater Federal and ECS Federal. Together, they provide IT support for Sandia National Labs personnel across the United States.
This and previous grant cycles have include New Mexico nonprofits who are working on supporting STEM workforce needs. Adelante’s DiverseIT program has been doing IT training for several years. Adelante is honored to be among this year’s Encantado grantees.
Trainings Provided Thanks to Encantado:
One course the Encantado Foundation grant is funding is Intro to Tech. It’s a 4-week class Monday-Thursday mornings. It’s a good option for people who want to explore a variety of career options in tech. Students will be learning about video and photo editing, how to keyboard more quickly and accurately, website structure and editing, what computer coding behind video games, how to troubleshoot a computer, and more. No experience is required, but familiarity with the basic computer operations is helpful.
Google IT Support Professional Certification, widely recognized in the tech field, is also being offered through this Encantado grant. The Google IT Professional course offers the tangible skills needed to work as an entry-level tech support person. The curriculum can take up to a year to complete. It includes tech support fundamentals, computer networking, operating systems as a power user, system admin, IT infrastructure, and IT security. Professional development also is included to support future employment. This course does not require experience working in the tech field but does require working knowledge of a computer and some basic programs.
Thank you Encantado Foundation for making sure people who might not be able to afford these trainings can do so free of charge. Together, we can increase diversity in tech!
Know People Who Want Tech Training?
Adelante and Encantado want to connect new and diverse populations to the tech field. After all, more voices should be included in tech. Further, these populations deserve a shot at these higher paying careers.
The public is invited to share this training opportunity with anyone who would be interested. Again, we are especially looking for people who meet the diversity requirements. That includes women, people of color, and people with disabilities. Applications are available at diverseit.org for both courses. Questions can be directed to diverseit@goadelante.org.
DiverseIT also offers other trainings, too! If you need training, even one-on-one, to learn about computers, call at (505)881-8324.
