The following is a recap of a panel of presenters including Ron Green, Executive Director of digiSTORY and KC IMAGINE, Christina Zarate, Recruitment and Admissions Manager at Per Scholas, Sophia Muhindura, Career Placement Manager – KC at NPower, and Tanika Edmonds, Program Manager at Goodwill MOKAN Artemis Institute given to the Kansas City Coalition for Digital Inclusion on September 6th, 2024. 

Digital inclusion has its many ways of bridging gaps in industry, skill acquisition, and opportunity. But when it comes to digital skills training, there are a lot of beginner level programs in the Kansas City metro area, but less known is the middle skills development opportunities. The purpose of this gathering was to highlight some of the nonprofits in this space helping to close the gap on middle skills and workforce development for digital careers. 

DigiSTORY and KC IMAGINE

Since 2014, the Digital Storytelling Center of Kansas City (digiSTORY KC) has been providing workshops and other educational resources to advance digital media skills for those who wish to tell their stories through the fascinating capabilities of digital media. There was a recognition among Hallmark professionals, University of Missouri media faculty and Kansas City workforce development leaders that explored the ways in which digital storytelling was emerging as a dynamic new form of communication fueled by the growth of social media and online entertainment. Through their KCdigiKids program they promote digital literacy for kids in the urban core through experiential, hands-on learning activities that will encourage them to pursue rewarding careers in STEM/STEAM occupations.

digiSTORY KC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that offers programs and resources to promote the development and expansion of multimedia, story-based expertise in the central Midwest and beyond.  Their three key missions include: inspiring and educating the region’s next generation of digital storytellers, supporting the development of current working professionals in digital media, and advancing the digital storytelling industry in the central Midwest and beyond

KC IMAGINE grew out of a need for a program to formally promote collaboration between the region’s digital media stakeholders, as the digital media industry is extensive, but very decentralized. They conduct events in the Kansas City region every year that bring together area leaders from educational, business and civic organizations to explore ways to improve how to prepare talent to serve the region’s digital media industry. KC IMAGINE provides a forum for stakeholders to address their talent pipeline challenges, as well as bringing students into some of those forums to explore regional career possibilities. In 2017, Mid-America Regional Council research indicated that digital media is an economic cluster worthy of greater development support, with Kansas City ranked 9th among our 31 peer cities. 

For organizations interested in learning more about these organizations, they can contact Executive Director Ron Green to find out how they can partner with KC IMAGINE events or bring prospective students to digiSTORY KC programming. The KCdigiSTORY Center is actively engaged with the Mid-America Regional Council, Thank You Walt Disney, The Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City and others to pursue opportunities to place their center in the Laugh-O-Gram Studio building at 31st & Forest where Walt Disney launched one of his earliest animation businesses. More details can be found on their website at digistory.org or kcimagine.org

Per Scholas

For over 25 years, Per Scholas has been working to provide skills training and access to employer networks to individuals often excluded from tech careers. Their mission is to advance economic equity through rigorous training for tech careers and to connect skilled talent to leading businesses. With over 20 campuses nationwide, Per Scholas has trained over 25,000 graduates from their program who have launched successful careers in tech to date through their no-cost technical training. 

They work directly with employers, large and small, to design rigorous, boot camp-style courses with an 85% graduation rate. Their tuition-free training combines business professional skills development with hands-on technical instruction for high demand jobs. Per Scholas is building a more diverse technical workforce with employers by creating on-ramps for women and people of color, groups staggeringly underrepresented in IT employment today. 85% of their learners are people of color, a third are women, and a third are young adults. 

Per Scholas built their Kansas City campus in 2024 and successfully graduated their first cohort in fall 2024. They are interested in partnering with organizations to spread awareness of their programming, as well as connecting with potential employers for internship or full-time opportunities for their graduates. For more information, go to https://perscholas.org/locations/kansas-city/ .

NPower

NPower creates pathways to economic prosperity by launching digital careers for military veterans and young adults from underserved communities. In today’s economy, over 50% of all jobs require some degree of technology and digital skill. NPower envisions a future where our domestic technology workforce is diverse, and clear pathways exist for all people regardless of ethnicity, gender, or socio-economic background to succeed in our digital economy. NPower is a national nonprofit that currently operates in over 10 states and is growing. 

Some of NPower’s program highlights include FREE tech career training, industry-recognized credentials, professional development opportunities and workforce readiness training, social support managers, and launching careers which includes an extensive alumni network that will help participants get connections they need to find valuable employment. They will also occasionally hire alumni of the program as technical skills providers, which is another natural pipeline for participants. 

Located on the campus of St. Louis Community College since 2017, NPower Missouri provides FREE technology training and development to young adult job seekers, offering an alternative fast-track to tech jobs with employers committed to hiring diverse IT talent. They are also building a Kansas City location in 2024. For more information, go to https://www.npower.org/locations/missouri/ .  Also, NPower runs a Community Helpdesk, which provides free tech support to those in the greater Kansas City/St. Louis area. Their tech professionals are there to help you navigate your most challenging computer and tech issues. Call their dedicated phone line for support with hardware and software issues, internet connectivity, and so much more. For more information, go to https://www.npower.org/community-helpdesk/ .

Goodwill MOKAN – Artemis Institute

For almost 130 years, Goodwill has had a rich legacy of service for Kansans and Missourians, and through this ever-changing technology ecosystem, Goodwill wants to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to benefit from the well-paying careers currently available within the IT field as well as the future state jobs that are being created. To achieve this goal, Goodwill launched the Artemis Institute in 2020, in partnership with area technology companies, to train adults in Kansas and Missouri so they are well prepared for the next wave of industry. 

All of the Artemis Institute programs are free to qualified applicants, which includes Bridge To Technology, Meta Social Media Marketing Professional Certification, and Grow with Google Career Certification. Bridge To Technology program is designed to prepare adult learners for an advanced career pathway of their choice within the technology field and other identified future state industries including Robotics, AI/Computer Vision Machine Learning, AR/VR (Artificial Reality/Virtual Reality), 3D Printing, Cybersecurity, and IoT (Internet of Things) and more. 

Through a combination of virtual and in-person classes, their instructors and expert advisors help students understand and explore the skills and careers that are advancing in the 4th Industrial Revolution. Their program is centered on hands-on and project based experiences and learning through the use of virtual reality headsets and other future-state technologies. Participants in this program are provided career support, with one-to-one career guidance with comprehensive support services, as well as job placement services and employer connections. 

Goodwill MOKAN Artemis Institute is always looking for more organizations interested in partnership, particularly with workforce development and employment. They are always looking for more students to join their programs and will take referrals. For more information go to https://goodwillartemisinstitute.com/ .

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