Two Chicago organizations that have gained attention for missions to expand and strengthen Chicago’s tech industry launched a new program to help provide inexpensive computer science education to Illinoisans.
P33, an effort by Chicago’s private-sector leaders to boost the city’s tech reputation, and the Discovery Partners Institute, a network of research and innovation hubs in the South Loop, announced the initiative, called TechReady Illinois, on Monday.
The program allows Illinois residents to enroll in computer science certificate programs at a 50-75% discount. The virtual courses will be offered in data and analytics, cloud computing, cybersecurity and software development.
There are currently 20 programs across the four tracks offered from 10 providers, with 12 different certificates being available. Most programs will take about 20 weeks to complete, DPI says.
Some courses will be conducted by faculty from University of Chicago, the University of Illinois System, the Illinois Institute of Technology and City Colleges of Chicago. Others will be organized by Coursera and i.c.stars.
Depending on the institution, prerequisites for being accepted into specific programs differ. P33 and DPI did not expand on what specific prerequisites are, but said the intent is to provide offerings to a wide variety of students with varying levels of technical backgrounds.
“Illinois has some of the leading computer science, data and engineering programs in the world,” said Bill Jackson, the executive Director of DPI, in a statement. “The TechReady Illinois program will provide participants high-quality training that they’ll be able to put to use immediately at a price that is appropriate for this economically devastating moment.”
DPI and P33 said they’re launching the tech education program to address high unemployment rates caused by the Covid-19 crisis. More than 40 million people in the U.S. have applied for unemployment benefits. But tech and startup companies are no exception among companies downsizing. Dozens of Chicago tech organizations have laid off employees and many more have instituted hiring freezes.
