A local nonprofit is giving people in Iowa a chance to learn technical skills at no charge. Goodwill of the Heartland is helping 45 Iowans get certified in new fields completely online.
The pandemic has shifted many things in the u.s. including what kind of jobs are in high demand.
new data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show big losses for hospitality jobs, with bars and restaurants losing 26% of their workers and hotels losing 40%.
A need for more people in technical fields is why the Goodwill of the Heartland stepped in to help.
“There are specific grants because of the pandemic, that are out there to help those that lost their jobs, and a lot of them in hospitality or customer service,” MedCerts national director Sandy Mead said.
Leaders with Goodwill say their partnership with the company MedCerts is putting people in a position to succeed.
“There were so many people laid off, or their hours were reduced, or the hours were reduced. And people started thinking about the future and saw this opportunity,” Goodwill career services manager Amy Winslow said. “The training and the certifications definitely help people present themselves as qualified candidates.”
The certifications include IT tech training, a pharmacy technician program, and medical assistants alongside medical coding and billing. With the online format, they say the programs are more flexible.
“It allows the student to complete their training around their schedule, and definitely have less stress,” Mead said.
Funding for this program was provided by allocations from the Cares Act in the state of Iowa.
To learn more about MedCerts, visit medcerts.com
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