SLO Partners, one of the leading providers of career upskilling programs in California, today announced details of several retraining opportunities for local residents starting this summer. The Precision Manufacturing bootcamp, in partnership with Cuesta College, and the Web Development and Cyber Security bootcamps, in partnership with Cal Poly Extended Education, are now accepting applications and will begin in June. Many jobs that were lost during the pandemic are not returning which has led to an increased number of people looking for work in new sectors. As a result, retraining programs are proving to play a crucial role in getting people back to work. SLO Partners created the bootcamps after identifying a need for skilled workers in these areas on the Central Coast. “Although unemployment is high, there are areas in our economy that currently have talent shortages,” said Paula Mathias-Fryer Program Director at SLO Partners (www.slopartners.org). “This presents an opportunity for locals to gain skills in these areas, get back to work and help plug the skills gap.”
The bootcamps are proving to be particularly popular for women, whose careers have been impacted on a greater scale than mens’ during the pandemic. “We’ve seen a significant uptick in women enrolling in our programs,” added Mathias-Fryer. “One of the major appeals is the remote working opportunities available in the tech sector. Another is the bootcamps are shorter and more affordable than many other education paths, providing a quicker solution to retrain and get back to work. If you’re interested in coding, like to tinker in your garage or solve problems, going to an accelerated bootcamp is a great way to explore if it’s something you’d like to do as a career. We’re hoping that women who have put their careers on the back burner during Covid, will be able to rebound or find a career path they enjoy more than their previous roles.” $2,000 Women in Tech scholarships are available for the Web Development and Cyber Security bootcamps to support women retrain and get back into the workforce.
One example of a local company who has hired bootcamp graduates is Trust Automation. “The program really gives people a leg up in this area to get started in manufacturing,” said Ty Safrino, CEO of Trust Automation. “We’ve been very successful with the candidates we’ve gotten from SLO Partners. The program takes people with the base skills that are needed for an advanced manufacturing career and then exposes them to the terminology and tools needed for a business like us which is exactly what we need.”
Start dates for the bootcamps are as follows:
- Web Development: June 7
- Ticket to Precision Manufacturing: June 7
- Cyber Security: June 7
For more information about the bootcamps visit www.slopartners.org or contact Paula Mathias-Fryer at [email protected].