Connecticut's community colleges will be offering Amazon
tech classes that could help students land a high-paying job.
The company announced the program at Gateway Community
College on Monday. The Amazon Web Services Academy will run for four months. At
the end, students who complete the non-credit course will receive a
cloud computing certificate. That certificate can be helpful for those looking
for a tech job in Connecticut.
The positions pay a lot and there are lots of them. Last
year, Connecticut saw 40,000 job postings for cloud computing, but there aren't
enough qualified workers.
State Chief Operating Officer Josh Geballe and Gov.
Ned Lamont are hoping the academy will help Connecticut residents fill
those roles, as opposed to hiring out of state workers.
"You don't need two years. You don't necessarily need
four years. But in six, 12, 18 weeks – you can get the skill set you need going
forward," said Gov. Ned Lamont.
The classes, which are open to anyone, are only going to be
offered at four campuses to start out, including Housatonic Community College
in Bridgeport. By next summer, they will roll out to all 17 community colleges
in the state. State universities will also offer the course, and it will also
be available online.
The AWS Academy will cost $795. The state is hoping to
cover part of it, plus cover costs for transportation and child care through
federal rescue plan dollars.
"I don't want cost to be an impediment to people
getting the skills they need right now," said Lamont.
How much is all this is costing the community colleges?
Nothing. Amazon is offering the training for free.