CompTIA Contributes $70,000 to Support Technology Education and Skills Training

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., April 4, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, CompTIA announced that it will award grants totaling $70,000 to support community-based efforts that promote information technology (IT) and IT workforce development, education and training.

The grants of $5,000 to each qualifying organization will be awarded through CompTIA's state-based TechVoice partners. TechVoice is a grassroots partnership between CompTIA, TECNA and other technology organizations, dedicated to impacting policy issues important to growth, innovation and job creation.

CompTIA has designated the funds to nonprofit organizations in 14 states – Arizona, California,, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Ohio, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York and Washington – that make technology more available to people in areas of need, such as low-income and disaster-ridden neighborhoods, and promote science, technology and engineering (STEM) education in schools.

"Technology plays a significant role in everyday social activities, but we need to encourage greater interest in technology skills and education if we are to keep growing this important business sector," said Todd Thibodeaux, president and chief executive officer, CompTIA. "To promote and expand the use of technology in more areas of the country, and thus advance the IT workforce, it's necessary to garner support from – and offer support for – community programs that help develop IT skills and build awareness, understanding and appreciation for technology careers."

Last month, CompTIA awarded one of these grants to the TAG Education Collaborative on behalf of the Technology Association of Georgia (TAG), a partner of TechVoice. The program is designed to improve STEM education in Georgia's K-12 schools and ultimately meet the demands of the future workforce. TAG-Ed programs include the WEBChallenge competition, which gives students a chance to compete for scholarship money by developing and marketing a website or mobile website to teach their peers about STEM subjects. TAG-Ed also offers a High School Summer Internship program to give students interested in STEM careers experience working in a true business setting at local technology companies. 

CompTIA's contributions through TechVoice are another pillar of the organization's work to engage underserved populations in technology and increase broader IT training and workforce readiness. Through its foundation, the Creating IT Futures Foundation, CompTIA provides training and certification opportunities to people who have historically been under-represented in the IT workforce, including individuals with disabilities, at-risk youth, women and military personnel and their spouses. CompTIA also recently launched its Troops to Tech Careers initiative to help veterans access information, training and job opportunities in IT fields.

"Overall, we hope to improve the technology industry by increasing the opportunities for education and training in all IT related fields," said Thibodeaux.

About CompTIA
CompTIA is the voice of the world's information technology (IT) industry. Its members are the companies at the forefront of innovation; and the professionals responsible for maximizing the benefits organizations receive from their investments in technology. CompTIA is dedicated to advancing industry growth through its educational programs, market research, networking events, professional certifications, and public policy advocacy. For more information, visit www.comptia.org or follow CompTIA on Twitter at http://twitter.com/comptia.

CompTIA's Public Advocacy group focuses on a broad array of issues affecting the IT industry, with particular emphasis on representing the interests of small and mid-sized IT companies and entrepreneurs.  Areas of focus include workforce education and training, tax matters, access to capital, health IT, export promotion, procurement, cybersecurity and smart technologies.

About TechVoice
TechVoice (www.techvoice.org) is a partnership of the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA), the Technology Councils of North America (TECNA), and participating regional technology associations. Collectively, we represent thousands of technology companies across the country employing millions of workers. We are dedicated to empowering and mobilizing the grassroots tech community to impact legislative and regulatory issues important to growth, innovation and job creation.

SOURCE CompTIA