At GoSprout, we talk a lot about the benefits of apprenticeships for all the stakeholders:
- Sponsors
- Employers
- RTI-Provider Colleges/Universities
- Journeymen
- Pre-Apprenticeship High Schools
- Apprentices Themselves
And we’ve also talked about how there are all these organizations that want to reward companies for launching these amazing, transformational programs called registered apprenticeships.
In this article, we’re going to dive in on Miami EdTech’s program and the ECMC Foundation grant that it just received to support its GoSprout-powered apprenticeship programs.
More About ECMC Foundation
Based in Los Angeles, the firm uses strategic grantmaking and program-related investments.
Here’s what their website’s headline: “Our North Star: Eliminate Equity Gaps in Postsecondary Completion by 20240.”
ECMC Foundation’s website explains “winning” as follows: “We will know we have succeed when by 2040, disparities in postsecondary completion by race and ethnicity, geography, income and other indicators are virtually indiscernible.”
Sound familiar? Our founder, Carlos Vazquez, views GoSprout as vehicle to close the equity gap as well, in-part inspired by his background in a Puerto Rican immigrant family in The Bronx.
More About Miami EdTech
Carlos’s first baby, Miami EdTech is a nonprofit founded in 2017 and dedicated to closing the skills gap and improving economic opportunity via providing access to high-quality STEM education with particular focus on underrepresented communities.
The company has two programs that will directly benefit from the ECMC Foundation grant: Workforce.Miami and Apprenticeship.Miami.
Focus on Apprenticeship.Miami
Here’s how the press release summarizes this program:
Apprenticeship.Miami offers structured apprenticeship programs starting from as young as high school. This initiative helps young adults and job seekers gain early exposure to potential career paths in STEM fields, providing them with the skills and experience needed to succeed in today’s competitive job market. Importantly, registered apprentices are eligible for free public college education, significantly reducing the financial barriers to obtaining higher education and advanced training.
Part of the program is about the content and quality of these stem-focused programs with the goal of increasing success upon entry to the job market. Artificial Intelligence and UX/UI design are examples of cutting-edge fields included.
And part of the program is getting more RAPs launched in the Miami-Dade area postsecondary education system.
ECMC Foundation joins an impressive list of Miami EdTech supporters: Johnson & Johnson, LUMA, Google, Microsoft, and The Hispanic Federation.
ECMC Program Officer Anna Fontus summarized her firm’s view of the relationship:
We are proud to support Miami EdTech as they work toward eliminating equity gaps in postsecondary completion. Their innovative approach to workforce development and commitment to underserved populations will prepare students for high-quality jobs while supporting their attainment of a degree. We believe this partnership will bring about significant positive change in the South Florida community and beyond, and be a model for replication across the country.
Who Should Take Note?
Non-Employer Sponsors
The funding ecosystem is huge but also fragmented. Requirements can be opaque for firms that haven’t gone through the grant-writing process a number of times.
GoSprout’s apprenticeship management tools allow sponsors to reallocate time to connecting with organizations who want to support them.
GoSprout is also building a community of apprenticeship-centric stakeholders and will be happy to make introductions.
Employers
Employers should take note of just how much support their really is for launching a registered apprenticeship program.
Employers across the country have skills gaps to fill. Young people getting the right training and then applying for those jobs is required. That’s clear.
But those young people can actually start working under the guidance of a mentor, providing real value that can monetized with clients, and those young peoples’ wages can reimbursed.
Miami EdTech’s program has wage reimbursement component for eligible participants.
Miami Area Secondary and Post-Secondary Education Providers
Miami EdTech helps facilitate preapprenticeship programs in high schools and registered apprenticeship programs that must have a classroom education component with local colleges and universities.
If your institution or even department isn’t yet leveraging all the amazing benefits of registered apprenticeships, reach out to Miami EdTech.
How Can GoSprout Help?
Schedule an introductory call with GoSprout. Our cloud-based apprenticeship management system makes it easy to launch and manage and registered apprenticeship, find and coordinate with other stakeholders, and stay compliant, which means that you can receive not just private grant money but also funding from the Department of Labor and other government entities.
