Des Moines Area Community College issued the following announcement on Aug. 4.
Twenty students choose one of two tracks in six-week program
- Track A students are focusing on digital marketing skills, while Track B students are concentrating on computer software development.
- Internship program ties in with new DMACC Perry VanKirk Center Computer Languages Academy, which opens this fall.
- Students said participating in three mandatory Zoom meetings each week have been extremely beneficial.
- DMACC Perry VanKirk Center Director Eddie Diaz said the paid summer internships are allowing incoming DMACC students to gain skills in high-demand fields.
The State of Iowa appropriated $250,000 in funds to support the Future Ready Iowa Summer Youth Intern Program grant, a funding opportunity to place youth who are at risk of not graduating from high school in internships primarily in high-demand career fields.
The DMACC VanKirk Academy internship started with 20 students on two work tracks:
- Track A: Students were trained in digital marketing skills through the DMACC Continuing Education Department's Online Digital Marketing Training.
- Track B: Students in the computer language track developed skills in software development through a partnership with Delta V Code School.
Diaz said the COVID-19 pandemic presented some significant challenges, but ultimately led to an innovative internship experience that focused on developing skills that are widely needed.
"We are proud that our summer internship program was able to pivot toward an online internship within a matter of weeks," Diaz said. “This allowed students to gain skills in high-demand fields, including digital marketing and software development, while earning money that they can use towards their pursuit of a college degree at DMACC."
Eoin Davis of Perry is one of the DMACC Perry VanKirk Center summer interns taking the Track B route for coders. He graduated from Perry High School and said he plans to enroll in the Computer Languages Academy at DMACC this fall after completing his 20-hour per week paid internship.
The DMACC Perry VanKirk Center is starting a new Computer Languages Academy in the fall in which students will take 36 credits in a one-year diploma program leading to high-demand, high-paying jobs in the software development field.
According to Diaz, once students complete the Perry program, select graduates will participate in a four-month commercial software development training program at the new Rural Forge in Jefferson. That company, which is attempting to bring Silicon Valley-type high-tech jobs to rural Iowa, will help the future workforce further develop their programming skills. Diaz said at the conclusion of the four months, the young professionals may be invited to be interviewed for jobs having a $50,000 to $60,000 starting pay, with salaries potentially growing to six figures quickly in the high-demand, high-paying careers.
Davis said participating in three mandatory weekly Zoom meetings, each lasting approximately 90 minutes, has been extremely beneficial for the internship program participants. He said the Monday Zoom class is a project management class, while the Tuesday meeting is a soft skills class focusing on professionalism, communication and dealing with employers. The Thursday Zoom class for the Track B students is a coding class, while the Track A students have a marketing class.
Davis said these classes prepare the students for moving into the real world.
“Having the ability to work with a client is amazing because not only will it give us references for future jobs, but it will also allow us to see how a relationship between an employee and a third party, like other clients, evolves over time and how working for and with them would play out in a real world," Davis said.
Fellow Perry High School graduate Alexa Zarate of Perry is also a summer intern, but she is taking Track A. As part of her internship, she is working with White Rock Conservancy in Coon Rapids and creating four to six ads for the 5,500-acre non-profit land trust to promote their housing accommodations.
Zarate said she plans to attend the DMACC Ankeny Campus in the fall, majoring in Dental Assisting and also plans to take classes at the Perry VanKirk Center.
“My major is not marketing or project management but going through this internship has taught me that I'm capable of more than I think I am and to think outside of the box, even when it's outside of your comfort zone," Zarate said.
Rocking W Services Managing Director Rob Wiley is one of the instructors in the six-week program. The Perry-based consulting firm provides professional services and IT support to state and federal government agencies as well as the private sector. He said project management skills can benefit students throughout their academic studies, personal lives and in the workplace.
“The students are experiencing the challenges of working in virtual teams and are learning how to navigate through an assortment of issues within each of the projects," Wiley said.
The pilot program ends Aug. 14.
The Summer Youth Intern Program was created under the Future Ready Iowa Act as a way to develop Iowa's skilled workforce. The initiative aims to ensure 70 percent of Iowans in the workforce, ages 25-64, have education and training beyond high school by the year 2025. For more information about Future Ready Iowa, visit www.FutureReadyIowa.gov.
For more information, contact: Eddie Diaz, (515) 428-8120, ediaz@dmacc.edu
Original source can be found here.
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