TechCert and the Stride Center have teamed with the Urban League

In Sacramento's still-struggling employment market, the region's tech sector continues to offer reason for hope. Sacramento tech postings are surging, said job search site Dice.com. More companies are adding positions, gearing up and growing, said officials at the Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance. At the Greater Sacramento Urban League, a class of 30 is learning the skills needed to enter the tech job market. Students in the class, called TechCert, receive free training to become certified as computer technicians. "This is a boot camp for the tech world. We're preparing people for a new working environment," said Darby Patterson, Sacramento program director of the nonprofit Stride Center, the Oakland-based career training organization teaching the course. "We track the news like everybody else, and the greatest survivability is in tech," Patterson said. "Everybody in business needs their systems to work." Students range from high school age to workers 50 and over. Many are low-income or displaced workers looking to gain a foothold in today's economy. The comprehensive 23-week course takes students from computer upgrades and repair to troubleshooting, removing viruses and loading operating systems, all toward testing for A+ certification demonstrating competency as a computer technician. "We think this will make a difference," said David DeLuz, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Sacramento Urban League. "This helps us provide a significantly elevated level of opportunity for people in our community."
For more information on the TechCert program, visit online at www.stridecenter.org
 
The course is funded by a $591,000 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grant to the local Urban League through the state's Employment Development Department.

"TOOLS FOR YOUR CAREER" Diversity Job Fair 2010

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