SLO Partners Expands Digital Marketing Bootcamp to Support Businesses in Covid-19 Recovery Across the Central Coast
Grant secured to triple the program size and provide scholarships to most impacted businesses
[San Luis Obispo, March 15, 2021] SLO Partners, one of the leading providers of career upskilling programs in California, today announced it has received funding to expand its Digital Marketing bootcamp to aid businesses across the Central Coast in their Covid-19 recovery. The Economic Vitality Corporation (EVC) and the Economic Development Collaborative (EDC) secured a grant from the Morgan Family Foundation which will be used to expand the program from one to three bootcamps, starting April 1st, May 1st and June 1st. The cost will be subsidized and scholarships will be available for those impacted most by the pandemic. The bootcamp is designed for individuals looking to gain marketing know-how and small to medium sized businesses who want to gain the skills to create and maintain an effective social media presence. SLO Partners created the program after seeing the important role social media played in keeping local businesses afloat during the pandemic. “We’re extremely grateful to have received this funding,” said Paula Mathias-Fryer, Program Director at SLO Partners (www.slopartners.org). “Increasing the number of bootcamps and offering scholarships will greatly expand the impact we’ll have in strengthening businesses and upskilling our workforce across the Central Coast.”
“In consideration of the particular miseries the pandemic has visited upon business such as closures and social distancing, we believed the most practical and impactful program would be a curriculum of applied learning in digital literacy and marketing,” said Bruce Stenslie, President and CEO of the EDC (www.edcollaborative.com). “SLO Partners was a perfect fit for this, through its bootcamp model that includes widely recognized skills certifications, relevant both to businesses and their workers.”
“The ability to conduct business online is a game-changer, so we’re thrilled to see this partnership come together to expand this valuable training across the region and look forward to continuing our support under the banner of REACH,” said Loreli Cappel, Senior Director at the EVC, which is consolidating under REACH (reachcentralcoast.org). “We also wanted to ensure that those who have been hit hardest by Covid would be able to access the training, which is why it was important for us to make scholarships available.”
“Investments in upskilling and retraining programs are vital to meeting the needs of both workers and small businesses,” said Jacqui Irwin, District 44 Assemblymember. “The effects of Covid-19 have made this even clearer. I am excited about the launch of this program and how this partnership can help move the Tri-Counties region toward a sustainable economic future.”
For more information about the Digital Marketing Bootcamps visit https://www.greenfig.com/digital-marketing/slo. Businesses who would like to support the program can contact Paula Mathias-Fryer at [email protected].
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About SLO Partners (www.slopartners.org)
SLO Partners is a leading provider of career upskilling and modern apprenticeship programs in California and a winner of the 2020 CA Partnership for Industry and Education award. Formed in 2014 as an initiative of the San Luis Obispo County Office of Education, its mission is to create accelerated
career-pathways allowing residents to earn head-of-household incomes, while simultaneously solving a skilled talent shortage for local, growing businesses. The nonprofit has produced several intensive upskilling programs: FullStack Software Developer, Software Testing, IT Networking, Precision Manufacturing and Digital Marketing. Together, these have produced over 150 career opportunities in SLO County in tech and manufacturing roles creating a $5M local annual economic impact. For more information watch the ‘SLO Partners: How it Works’ video and visit www.slopartners.org.
About REACH (reachcentralcoast.org)
REACH is an economic impact organization created to ensure the Central Coast of California is a place where current and future generations have the opportunity to thrive. With a mission to increase economic prosperity through big thinking, bold action and regional collaboration, REACH serves the Central Coast Region spanning San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties. For more information visit www.reachcentralcoast.org.
About the EDC (www.edcollaborative.com)
The EDC creates confident, connected and directed business owners, civic leaders, and community partners by providing tools to build pathways for economic development.
Established in 1996, EDC is a not for profit public/private partnership corporation, dedicated to growing the region’s economy. EDC-VC is a service based economic development organization, dedicated to three foundational activities: business retention, growth and expansion; entrepreneurship, networking regional assets for the creation of new firms and jobs; and business attraction, promoting an assets-based strategy, based on regional quality of life, skilled labor, quality education and workforce systems, and effective regional collaboration. EDC’s core activities include serving as the Ventura and Santa Barbara County Small Business Development Center; business lending, serving as an alternative to commercial credit; and actively monitoring, analyzing, interpreting and reporting on regional economic and labor market conditions and trends.
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