The AIM Institute and Ralston High School have partnered to deliver an online, self-paced course in web development for high schoolers and are celebrating the successful completion of its inaugural run. The course was administered by AIM Code School instructor Vanessa Kasun, who held regular office hours and was available to answer students’ questions.
The benefits of the course are numerous, said Emily Matis, director of AIM Code School. Aside from the more obvious plusses, such as teaching valuable coding skills and helping students sustain their academic progress despite the pandemic, the course gave participants the chance to maintain a little more freedom during summer break.
“Students could move through the curriculum at their own pace, finish projects at their own pace, and reach out to Vanessa with any questions they had about the material,” Matis said.
The course fulfills AIM’s mission to grow, connect and inspire the tech talent community, and also meets Ralston Public School’s goal of exposing students to what they call “H3” careers: those that are in high demand, require a high level of skill and pay high wages.
“It’s important for us to give students those skills to help them be successful in those careers if that’s the path that they choose,” said Joshua Wilken, career education and EL coordinator for Ralston Public Schools.
Wilken said coding classes are in high demand among the student population at Ralston High School.
“We have so many students who are interested in information technology and web development and coding,” Wilken said. “We just wanted to take this one step further by offering a web development course to these students, with an institution that is extremely reputable with an excellent framework for teaching.”
AIM helps people at all stages in their development—from students to experienced IT managers—make their way along the tech career path through tech education, coding classes, leadership development academies and industry events. To that end, AIM has also launched a free Tech Navigator program offering personalized guidance to anyone interested in entering or furthering their progress in the technology field.
“We’ve had a tremendous experience working with the AIM Institute as a community partner,” Wilken said. “I think AIM has done a tremendous job of making this program accessible to our students. Their communication has been outstanding, and I know that our students have had a wonderful experience.”
Wilken said the response was so favorable, AIM and Ralston are discussing ways to extend the collaboration and make the class available to more students.
“Students who responded to me that weren’t able to take the course this summer, they’re like, ‘Dr. Wilken, please let us know about future opportunities, because this is something that we want to be a part of,’” he said. “I’m excited to see where it can go.”
AIM also partners with Omaha South High School to offer a similar course. Two of that pilot program’s graduates received paid internships at Union Pacific this summer.
Interested in sponsoring or partnering with AIM? Check out our donor partner program, or contact us about sponsorship opportunities.
Note: this article originally appeared on siliconprairienews.com. We are re-posting it here with permission in appreciation for all that Shelly has accomplished, and for her valuable work as an instructor in the AIM Emerging Tech Leaders virtual program. Emerging Tech Leaders helps professionals with 0 to 3 years of management experience master the skills they need to successfully lead teams comprised of software developers and other professionals. The next session begins September 7. To learn powerful resource optimization and tech leadership skills directly from Shelly, and for more information about this program, visit the Emerging Tech Leaders page.
She can code (she earned a B.S. in computer information management). She can execute (certified Six Sigma Master Black Belt and Agile Scrum Master). She can teach (instructor in the AIM Institute Emerging Leaders Program). She can write (currently working on her first book). And she can lead (she’s a vice president within enterprise portfolio delivery services for Bank of the West).
In more ways than one, she can lead.
Blakeman has honed her leadership skills through 20 years working in IT for various companies, often as one of few women in the department.
“The tech landscape has been pretty rough for women historically,” Blakeman said. “Going back to my early days, I was one of not very many women digging into tech.”
Early on, Blakeman worked in the customer service department at Ford Motor Credit Company. Taking advantage of the company’s tuition reimbursement policy, she enrolled at College of Saint Mary to study technology. She chose IT for the lure of job stability and marketable skills.
In nearly empty classrooms, Blakeman learned to write COBOL, a mainframe language now considered outdated (but still widely used in the financial industry). Learning COBOL taught her the linear, structured thinking and problem-solving skills that would come to power her success in tech.
As Blakeman’s education progressed, so did her place on the corporate ladder. Within a few years, she became the email team leader for a company of over 30,000 employees. This was back when the web was still new, computers at work were not yet ubiquitous, and email was spelled e-mail.
It was also a time when IT departments were little understood. Tech workers operated in knowledge silos, too often viewed as gatekeepers and order takers, not integral members of the company, Blakeman said. Worse, IT workers could also see themselves this way, developing a command and control attitude rather than a customer-centric service mindset.
As one might guess, non-tech employees resented the perceived power imbalance.
Blakeman’s dual experience in customer service and IT allowed her to see the issue holistically.
“I could very quickly discern that there was almost a battle waged between business and IT,” she said.
She became a powerful liaison between the two. With her technical knowledge, she could help the business team identify and articulate what the company was actually looking for, and then explain to the IT department the business reasons why technical specs might need to evolve.
This experience inspired her to begin formal training in Six Sigma and Agile methodologies, reflecting her simultaneous interest in improving businesses processes and software development project management. The knowledge and leadership skills she developed helped her advance her career and keep pace with the workplace trend toward increased cross-functionality, teamwork and customer-centricity within organizations.
They also serve her well in her current role at Bank of the West.
“Think about the Agile Manifesto and the many, many companies that are trying to drive toward Agile,” Blakeman said. “Why is that? In part, it’s because IT folks have said, ‘Hey, our voices are not being heard. We’re not being adequately represented.’”
This cultural shift toward cooperation, diverse points of view and the conscription of individual talent to help achieve collectively defined goals has helped more women break into tech leadership. Since women tend to be socialized more strongly than men in communication skills and interpersonal relationship dynamics, they may have a competitive advantage as companies move away from the top-down, black-and-white, binary approach to workplace leadership and toward increased collaboration.
Still, men are vastly overrepresented at the highest levels of tech. As of 2019, only 18 percent of CIOs are women, according to a Korn Ferry analysis of the top 1,000 companies by revenue in the U.S.
And that’s not great news for anyone.
Teams with more diverse identities and perspectives at the table tend to outperform and out-innovate their less diverse counterparts.
Diversity, especially at the level of executives and boards of directors, increases employee satisfaction and retention and reduces turnover costs. And embracing diversity and inclusion will help reduce the knowledge bottlenecks and project breakdowns that can result from IT departments who take an outmoded top-down approach, Blakeman said.
To that end, she advises girls and women to recognize the powerful leadership skills they can offer tech, and the rewarding careers tech can offer them.
“As the global economy shifts from widget production to knowledge and services, there’s an appreciation for more diverse leadership,” she said. “The more that we can open minds to thinking about achieving outcomes, while still doing it with those technical competencies, but in a way that is more team-based and appreciative of the talents and skills of others, the more we can get away from that gatekeeper model that is still too prevalent in tech.”
Changing minds about the primacy of relational leadership in tech is key, because at the end of the day, it’s the people that drive technological success, not the other way around. Technology by itself accomplishes nothing.
“I have yet to see a laptop jump off a desk and solve any sort of business challenge,” Blakeman said.
The newly formed Careerlink, LLC was purchased by Microsoft and Yahoo! Alumni and will continue to support local job seekers and employers in innovative new ways. Miller said after meetings with several prospective Careerlink buyers, ranging from national investment groups to staffing agencies and entrepreneurs, AIM moved forward with the Careerlink, LLC offer because of its aligned vision, leadership and commitment to the Omaha community.
“We are proud of founding Careerlink and growing it into a successful job platform. It was important to AIM that Careerlink continues to benefit the community,” Miller said.
Careerlink will continue to operate in the Omaha area and retain existing employees. Jim Davis, Director of the new Careerlink LLC, said the platform will continue to support local job seekers and employers. New ways to connect them are in the works, he said.
“The entire team is extremely excited to be a part of the new company and to be executing on the new product roadmap,” Davis said. “We plan on introducing a host of new features and services to our users in the coming months that really will showcase the future of Careerlink for job seekers and employers alike.”
Beginning in 1995, Careerlink was one of the first online resources created to search and apply for jobs in the country. Careerlink began as the grant-funded “Career Opportunities On Line” or COOL system, which used the web to match IT college students with paid internships. The COOL system was rebranded as Careerlink and in the years since, nearly 14,000 employers have posted 3.7 million jobs that generated 4.5 million applications.
However, Careerlink did not align as closely with AIM’s nonprofit mission of offering tech-oriented programs, such as the Brain Exchange or AIM Code School. Miller said AIM can now build upon its efforts in working to fill the tech talent pipeline by adding alternative pathways for tech positions such as helping educate youth about tech skills, supporting programs that promote STEM and building more inclusive programs for diverse, underrepresented and at-risk students. In 2019, AIM engaged more than 6,100 youth in tech career and awareness.
“Our programs provide life-changing experiences, and we are committed to delivering more mentoring, coaching, resources and training for tech careers,” Miller said.
Careerlink’s community impact can be observed in experiences such as that of Brandi Holys. After a contractual assignment as a management consultant ended this past December, Holys found herself in a closeout meeting at corporate headquarters in midtown Manhattan, wondering what to do next.
She wanted to move back to Omaha, but that would require finding a suitable job that could match her skills and experience. She reached out to Careerlink for help. In January, she began her new position as Development Director of the Omaha Symphony. Holys recommends Careerlink to other professionals, especially during the pandemic, when so many are looking for work.
“If you are finding yourself in a professional world of uncertainty amidst the many health and economic changes our world is going through right now, I recommend you lean into support from your family and friends, check out Careerlink and know that we are all in this together,” said Holys.
Miller said AIM’s strategic shift is in line with national trends and is based on input the organization initiated with 50 IT leaders throughout the region, which highlighted a need to rapidly train and upskill workers tech skills, build a more robust talent pipeline and inspire youth to pursue tech careers. Community leaders involved with the Nebraska Tech Collaborative identified the need to add 10,000 tech workers in Nebraska by 2025.
“The tech talent shortage is a top concern for executives across virtually every industry since our economy is becoming increasingly reliant on tech labor for its health,” Miller said. “The sale of Careerlink increases AIM’s capacity to strengthen the local workforce, retain employers and elevate the entire community.”
—
Originally posted on Silicon Prairie News.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Brian Ayers
bayers@nulllukaspartners.com
402-895-2552 ext. 308
OMAHA, Nebraska (June 4, 2020) — AIM Institute, an innovative nonprofit that grows, connects and inspires Omaha’s tech community, today announced the divestiture of its Careerlink job platform, one of the first online resources created to search and apply for jobs. The sale of Careerlink to the newly formed Careerlink, LLC, which is helmed by former Microsoft and Yahoo! Alumni, provides further strategic investment in AIM’s core not-for-profit, mission-related services to address the growing shortage of tech professionals and skills gap across the region’s tech sector.
AIM’s strategic shift is in alignment with national trends and based on input from research the organization initiated with 50 IT leaders. Results confirmed a pervasive need to rapidly train and upskill workers’ tech skills, build a more robust pipeline and inspire youth to pursue tech careers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 24% growth in tech jobs by 2026. Community leaders involved with the Nebraska Tech Collaborative also identified the need to add 10,000 tech workers in Nebraska by 2025.
Kandace Miller, president and CEO of AIM, said the divestiture of Careerlink allows AIM to offer alternative training models, new and expanded programs and deeper partnerships with schools and organizations that are critical for building the workforce of tomorrow.
“The tech talent shortage is a top concern for executives across virtually every industry since our economy is becoming increasingly reliant on tech labor for its health,” Miller said. “Technology jobs represent the largest development opportunity in our region, and the current shortage of workers and skills demands that companies not continue to rely exclusively on traditional models for producing tech talent.”
Miller said the key to adding alternative pathways for tech positions is prioritizing learning tech skills at an early age in youth education programs, investing in programs that promote STEM and building more inclusive programs for diverse, underrepresented and at-risk students. In 2019, AIM engaged more than 6,100 youth program participants in tech career awareness and exploration. Additionally, 98% of AIM’s at-risk education program participants graduated from high school.
“Our programs provide life-changing learning experiences – mentoring, coaching, resources and training for tech careers,” Miller said.
Careerlink began as one of a variety of projects to create funding for AIM’s mission, and its divesture will do the same.
“The breadth and diversity of our programming introduces students to technology and provides personal and career development opportunities to tech workers through all stages of their employment lifecycle,” Miller said. “The sale of Careerlink increases AIM’s capacity to strengthen the local workforce, retain employers and elevate the entire community.”
Miller said after meetings with several prospective Careerlink buyers, ranging from national investment groups to staffing agencies and entrepreneurs, AIM moved forward with the Careerlink, LLC offer because of its leadership and commitment to the Omaha community.
“The buyer’s vision for Careerlink aligned with AIM’s,” Miller said. “Careerlink, LLC will continue to operate in the Omaha area, retain existing employees and introduce innovative new features for connecting local job seekers and employers. It was important to us that Careerlink continues to benefit the community.”
Jim Davis, Director of the new Careerlink, LLC said, “We look forward to continuing to support local job seekers and employers at Careerlink in innovative new ways. The entire team is extremely excited to be a part of the new company and to be executing on the new product roadmap. We plan on introducing a host of new features and services to our users in the coming months that really will showcase the future of Careerlink for job seekers and employers alike.”
AIM Institute is an innovative nonprofit that grows, connects and inspires the tech talent community through career development and educational programs. Through these efforts, we improve thousands of lives across the Silicon Prairie. More information about AIM is available at aimsite1.wpenginepowered.com.
Careerlink, LLC is a community based employment website that informs and connects local job seekers with relevant job opportunities from trusted companies. For over 20 years Careerlink has helped match amazing candidates to their future careers. More information about Careerlink,LLC available at careerlink.com.
Ashok Fichadia, Assistant Vice President of IT Development for Union Pacific, said the company is delighted to play a role in the students’ technical development.
“Union Pacific adds to its talented workforce through both traditional and non-traditional avenues. We are excited about the internship program for students trained through AIM Institute and Omaha South High School. Getting access to a local, technically proficient workforce is mutually beneficial to both Union Pacific and the community,” said Fichadia.
The Union Pacific internships are the culmination of a journey that began in January when Poudel and Espinoza Macias, along with 10 other students, took part in an intensive coding curriculum taught by the AIM Institute. AIM is a nonprofit that provides programs to build the tech workforce in the greater Omaha area through no-cost tech education for youth, a code school, tech conferences, leadership development for IT professionals, an annual tech awards show and Silicon Prairie News.
The program took place during a time when students are almost expected to be unmotivated: the last semester of high school. But not these students.
Espinoza Macias and Poudel both come from families with parents who did not attend college, something they have in common with most of the students AIM serves through its Youth in Tech programs.
Bolstered by the opportunities AIM’s pilot program has given them, Espinoza Macias will head to the University of Nebraska at Omaha this fall to major in cybersecurity, while Poudel takes a slightly different route pursuing a degree in IT innovation.
None of the other students who participated in the pilot program could be suspected of Senioritis either. They were all busy building their own websites, mastering the languages of HTML, CSS and Javascript first in the computer lab after school, and then at home on their very own laptops donated by Bricklayer.org.
“Even with the impact of COVID-19, students did not miss a beat in the training,” said Jim Mayberger, Career Technical Education Curriculum Specialist for Omaha South.
In fact, students had been required to interview for the class, knowing from the outset that they would not receive course credit, but an even better mark instead: the opportunity to enter a tech job right after graduation.
This arrangement proved powerfully motivating for students—and for employers calling for a stronger local tech workforce. Once word spread about the pilot program, conversation about internships and jobs arose in multiple companies, including some of the city’s most iconic enterprises. Union Pacific offered to interview and potentially place multiple students from the program into paid summer internships.
Eighty-three percent of the pilot program’s students competed for 2 internship spots. The process of interviewing with Union Pacific encouraged them to reflect on the technical abilities they’ve developed and start testing the professional communication skills they need to hone for their careers.
The students who landed the paid internships recall feeling simultaneously nervous and excited in the lead-up to their interviews.
Espinoza Macias said she received some valuable advice from AIM’s Vice President of Operations, Itzel Lopez, who called her the day before the interview in a show of solidarity.
“Mrs. Lopez gave me encouraging tips: to prepare, to dress formally, and to smile at the camera. It was really helpful,” Espinoza Macias said.
When Poudel first heard about the pilot program back in the fall of 2019, he didn’t know whether he wanted to participate. But he’d already participated in completed the Mutual of Omaha App challenge during his junior year, and he figured expanding his skills could only help.
“I was not sure when I first heard about the program, but I wanted to continue gaining knowledge on the web development side,” said Poudel, whose dream is to become a Software Engineer or Entrepreneur later in life. Despite his nervousness, Poudel said the interview went smoothly. Learning he had been accepted for the internship was a great excitement for him.
As for the pilot program, 10 graduates will take a Java course to further expand their skill set in the fall. The Java curriculum allows students to supplement their existing front-end development knowledge with back-end programming experience. Such full stack developers, who can essentially do it all, are highly in-demand among employers.
Though its physical halls are closed for now, the virtual hallways of Omaha South buzz with excitement for next year, when the pilot program will expand into a year-long after school offering. And while it’s too early to tell, Mayberger expressed confidence about the program’s incoming students. “The seniors coming up this next year are really talented,” he said.
While the future looks bright for AIM’s Youth in Tech programs, for the students they serve and for the Omaha businesses who will benefit from this partnership, more students still need to be reached to level the playing field. Individuals and businesses can support tech education for underserved youth through Omaha Gives!, a year-round giving platform organized by the Omaha Community Foundation and presented by American National Bank that culminates in a 24-hour giving sprint. The minimum donation is $1, and there is no maximum. Omaha Gives! takes place this Wednesday, May 20. Visit AIM’s Omaha Gives page to help support the work we do.
