EMCC, GCC & Microsoft team up to offer free non-credit courses
AVONDALE, ARIZONA, May 19 – Community members can earn Microsoft certifications free of charge through the Cloud Skills Challenge! A joint venture between Estrella Mountain, Glendale Community College, and Microsoft, the 30-day Challenge kicks off May 24.
Over the course of the Challenge, participants will prepare for Microsoft Fundamentals certifications through short step-by-step tutorials, browser-based interactive coding and scripting environments, and task-based achievements. The Challenge is designed to build employability skills and accelerate the next generation of students for the growing digital economy and workforce in the region.
“We are delighted to forge this new alliance with Microsoft in recognizing the importance of digital skills and the future workforce,” said Dr. Steven Gonzales, Maricopa Community Colleges Interim Chancellor. “We believe partnering with leading companies such as Microsoft helps us attract the best and brightest of students, provides an edge for our students and faculty in preparing the future workforce, and helps us fulfill our commitment to create a pipeline of talent and future innovation for the regional business community. The Maricopa Community Colleges have IT Institutes across the Valley that exist to train the future IT workforce for excellence in emerging technologies and this initiative is well suited for this important work.”
Upon completion of the challenge, students will have the opportunity to earn one to four industry-recognized Microsoft certifications. The skills and certification opportunities will continue to be offered to Maricopa students and the community until March 2022. EMCC and GCC also have a variety of other IT and emerging technology training opportunities including degrees and certificates in Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Cybersecurity, and Coding/Programming.
“Microsoft is pleased to work with Maricopa Community Colleges to bring the Cloud Skills Challenge to life with students across the district,” said Anthony Salcito, Vice President, Education at Microsoft. “Through this challenge, we hope to inspire students with the potential of technology to drive innovation and change the world, while inspiring them to think about their future careers.”