The first class of nine Apprenti cybersecurity analyst apprentices were honored this morning by NexusLA, the Louisiana Technology Park and Mayor Sharon Weston Broome.
Today’s pinning ceremony comes as the program—which launched in Baton Rouge one year ago—recruits and plans for its second class of apprentices to begin 12 weeks of industry-recognized technical training in January 2020.
Apprentices will then begin one year of paid on-the-job training at one of NexusLA’s six participating hiring partners (Blue Cross Blue Shield, EATEL Business, General Informatics, LANTEC of Louisiana, Transformyx, and State of Louisiana’s Office of Technology Services).
“Apprenti Louisiana has a solution to increase the local technology talent pool and promote a culture of homegrown training,” said Genevieve Silverman, president and CEO of the Research Park Corporation. “This proves that our innovation ecosystem does possess the resources to create high-paying jobs in Louisiana.”
Calling its pilot a “resounding success,” Silverman adds she intends to scale the program to include additional IT roles, such as software developers, and bring it to different areas of the state.
In an effort to bridge the digital skills and diversity gap, the program focuses on recruiting under-represented groups—including women, minorities, and veterans—and is available in 12 states nationally. It also bills itself as providing urgently needed talent to the state’s high-wage tech sector.
Over the past three years, Apprenti has placed over 700 apprentices at companies across the country. Nationally, the median pay for apprentices before they entered the program is $34,000, the median wage during an apprenticeship is $56,701, and post-apprenticeship salaries average $86,252. Approximately 80% of Apprenti graduates were retained by their employers after their apprenticeship.
Currently, it’s the only technology industry apprenticeship program registered with the Louisiana Workforce Commission, the state’s Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Labor.
