Otto Bremer Foundation Awards $50K to IT-Ready Job Program

MINNEAPOLIS, April 9, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Creating IT Futures Foundation's IT-Ready job program in Minneapolis / St. Paul received a $50,000 grant from the Otto Bremer Foundation (OBF). The grant will help low-income residents traditionally underrepresented in the IT industry train for and secure careers in information technology (IT).

The IT-Ready job program is offered free of charge to help unemployed and under-employed individuals enter the IT field, which has a shortage of qualified workers. IT-Ready is opening a new office in Edina, Minn., next month and hosting three additional IT-Ready classes this year to train and certify IT workers, most of whom will sign on with area companies as help desk and technical support staff for their first paid IT role.

The eight-week classes will start May 4, July 20 and October 19. Applications for the next class are due by April 13. Potential participants can apply at www.ITReady.com.

"Since we established IT-Ready in Minneapolis / St. Paul in 2012, more than 100 individuals have graduated with nearly 95 percent earning their CompTIA A+ certification and 80 percent moving into paid IT roles with area companies after graduation," said Charles Eaton, CEO of the Creating IT Futures Foundation. "Through IT-Ready, we're creating more than the opportunity for a job, but instead a life-long career full of upward mobility and self-sustaining income. We're deeply thankful for the grant by the Otto Bremer Foundation and pledge to deliver to them and the citizens of Minnesota the highest possible return on their generous gift." 

OBF awarded $5.7 million in grants to 106 organizations as part of its most recent grant-making cycle. OBF is a private charitable trust, established in 1944 by founder Otto Bremer, a successful Minnesota banker and community and business leader.

IT-Ready is offered in Minneapolis / St. Paul, Philadelphia and Omaha through Creating IT Futures and in Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio; Dallas; New York City; and the Washington, D.C., area by the non-profit organization, Per Scholas. IT-Ready is planning further expansion to more cities this year. 

To see what's required of IT-Ready participants and all that they receive, potential employers, mentors, apprentices and community partners can learn more at www.ITReady.com.

About the Creating IT Futures Foundation 
The Creating IT Futures Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity with the mission of helping populations under-represented in the information technology industry and individuals who are lacking in opportunity to prepare for, secure, and be successful in IT careers. Learn more at www.creatingITfutures.org.

About the Otto Bremer Foundation
Created in 1944, the Otto Bremer Foundation assists people in achieving full economic, civic and social participation in and for the betterment of their communities. The foundation strives to help build healthy, vibrant communities in the places that are homes and neighbors to Bremer banks—communities where basic needs are met, mutual regard is prized and opportunities for economic, civic and social participation are within everyone's reach. The Otto Bremer Foundation owns 92 percent of Bremer Bank, and receives an equivalent share of the bank profits that are paid out as dividends. This means that a large portion of bank profit is invested back in local communities through grants and program-related investments.

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SOURCE Creating IT Futures Foundation

Related Links

http://www.creatingitfutures.org/

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