SUNY Adirondack and SaratogaCanCode have joined forces to offer free computer coding education and training programs to serve unemployed and underemployed New York residents.
Funded through a state Department of Labor grant, the partnership will enable coding instruction in two popular courses—Front End Web Development and Python for Data Analytic —to serve up to 45 people.
SUNY Adirondack’s Workforce Readiness Academies Program (WRAP) provides free training opportunities for residents of New York state. Included in the program are customized services based on participant need, such as career coaching, academic advising, job-search skills, and accessing resources such as emergency child care and technology support.
The 12-week computer coding programs are offered virtually through SaratogaCanCode, which is part of CanCode Communities, a nonprofit organization dedicated to building a trained software workforce throughout upstate New York and beyond.
“We’re seeing such success with the summer cohort of students who are about to finish their IT boot camp training,” said Caelynn Prylo, Assistant Dean for Continuing Education and Workforce Innovation at SUNY Adirondack. “This program is truly transformational for the participants. With the workforce changes we’ve seen over the past year, more people than ever can benefit from this high-impact training program, expanding their skills and securing employment in a high-demand field and strengthen our region’s pool of trained, talented tech professionals.”
“We are delighted to partner with SUNY Adirondack to deliver computer coding education and training that is truly changing lives,” said Annmarie Lanesey, founder and CEO of CanCode Communities. “This is a wonderful opportunity to provide motivated individuals with pathways to exciting careers in the tech industry, and to build our tech workforce to support the rapid expansion of the digital workplace.”
The Front End Web Development course gives students hands-on practice building pieces of code to connect user experience into back-end processes. Through lectures, individual assignments, tutorials and projects, students will establish solid foundations in key programs for front-end developers, including HTML, CSS, Bootstrap, jQuery, JavaScript/jQuery and Github.
Officials said the course might be of particular interest to graphic designers and beginning programmers. It meets virtually two nights a week in three-hour sessions.
In the Python for Data Analytics course, students will learn fundamental programming concepts using Python as a tool for collecting, analyzing and visualizing data.
Officials said no programming experience is necessary, although those with experience who are interested in learning new languages and applications are welcome. Students will learn variables, data structures, loops, conditionals and other basics of programming, as well as delve into Python Libraries for data analysis and basic statistics to learn data interpretation techniques. The class meets virtually two nights a week in three-hour sessions.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, New York state has an unemployment rate of 7 percent, among the highest in the country. The state’s underemployed rate—those who work fewer than 35 hours a week but want to work full time and are available to do so—is 16 percent.
Those interested in learning more, including whether they qualify for these free programs, can visit www.sunyacc.edu/great-futures-it-careers-start-here.
CanCode Communities is a nonprofit organization founded in 2016 as AlbanyCanCode to develop nontraditional talent and advocate for a vibrant, inclusive tech talent pipeline in upstate New York. Operating on a stakeholder engagement model, the organization designs and delivers workforce training courses and hands-on K12 coding programs in alignment with the needs of employers, educators, talent and the community. The overall mission is to shift mind-set about who can work in technology; to remove cultural and economic barriers to joining the tech workforce; and to establish and promote pathways to tech careers throughout the region. Learn more at www.cancode.org.
SUNY Adirondack is a community college with a growing campus that is part of the nation’s largest university, the State University of New York. With locations in Queensbury, Glens Falls and Wilton, it offers courses in person and online; on-campus housing at the Queensbury campus; and serves students via credit and continuing education programs.