Free Information Technology certifications program helps employ Coloradans
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) - A program is helping Coloradans gain Information Technology certifications for free and therefore helping people be more desirable job applicants in the eyes of employers.
Goodwill of Colorado provides their LIFT program, partnering with MedCerts, a source of online Information Technology training, to provide up to $4,000 worth of free training and certifications per program participant.
“I had degrees in Finance, Accounting, and Economics through UCCS, and I was having a hard time finding a job,” said Anni Mezzofante, a military spouse who got the CompTIA A+ Certification and the CompTIA Network+ Certification through the LIFT program. “The certifications just give me that extra something my competitors didn’t have.”
Program leaders say employers are looking for people now more than ever with IT skills since working from home computers became standard during the pandemic.
“Certifications in IT, specifically A+ and Network Plus training, are kind of core fundamental certifications to enter into the IT arena. Obviously that is a sought after field, now more than ever with COVID in full swing,” said Bradd Hafer with Goodwill of Colorado.
Goodwill provides program funding. While the non-profit is well know for their thrift stores, money spent at those stores is a donation to programs like LIFT and many others.
Hafer added, “That’s what Goodwill is all about ... helping individuals with barriers overcome them by providing them with opportunities to find full employment in whatever their pursuit might be.”
Program leaders hope this helps bring Colorado unemployment numbers down, as they have significantly risen since the pandemic started.
Click here to find out more about the LIFT program.
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