UofL teams up with Humana Foundation, Interapt to launch community tech training program

The Humana Foundation, Interapt and the University of Louisville are partnering to bring a paid, immersive training program that teaches high-demand IT skills to the underemployed and unemployed in the Louisville community.

The program, called “Louisville Skills,” will provide up to 25 individuals the opportunity to build the technical, business and life skills necessary to work in a fast-paced, high-tech environment, preparing them to launch promising careers in the tech industry.

The Humana Foundation has earmarked $325,000 for the project, which will be targeted to residents in Louisville Metro, particularly in West Louisville.

“By addressing social determinants of health, or the conditions under which people are born, grow, live, work and age that impact overall health and well-being, we can make Louisville a more appealing place for everyone,” said Walter D. Woods, CEO of The Humana Foundation. “It’s exciting to see two local organizations collaborating and partnering to provide education and improve the financial outcomes of historically marginalized adults in Louisville’s West End.”

Interapt’s training program has been called “a national model of creating next-generation opportunity” and graduates have worked for and with companies such as Humana, Kindred, NetSmart, Elavon, Accenture, GE, Chase, El Toro and Eagle6. Through Interapt’s Registered Apprenticeship model with the U.S. Department of Labor, top graduates have seen their earnings potential increase to $90,000 just three years out of the program.

This is Interapt’s first partnership with a major university.

“Our goal is to improve the financial outcomes of the participants, helping both themselves and their families,” said UofL President Neeli Bendapudi. “UofL will perform rigorous outreach to find participants who have been historically underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. This innovative and forward-thinking partnership demonstrates our unwavering commitment to diversity and inclusion in our community.”

The training will be taught at UofL’s Hite Art Institute in West Louisville and will include foundational software programming concepts and software development skills. To ease the burden for students, they will receive a stipend of $100 per week during the program.

“Companies across the world are realizing that investing in skills and human capital is a cost-effective way to create new, high-wage jobs in the community while solving a major technology talent shortage. We are excited to start this partnership and create new and innovative pathways with the University of Louisville,” said Ankur Gopal, founder and CEO of Interapt.

Each year, companies are unable to fill thousands of new openings in the tech industry through traditional hiring practices. Gopal said the UofL and Interapt Louisville Skills initiative will help develop the next generation of workers and provide an innovative alternative to solving this talent shortage.