NATCHEZ, Miss. – A new training center in Natchez is expected to open in September to teach people computer skills.
One of five such centers operated by the Mississippi Coding Academies, the Natchez branch will be located here at Alcorn State University’s School of Business.
Mississippi Coding Academies is a non-profit organization that provides tuition-free education to underserved communities in Mississippi. The Jackson-based organization’s mission is to train people for high-wage, high-demand technology jobs.
The Natchez Board of Aldermen on Tuesday approved an agreement with MCA that Mayor Dan Gibson noted is being largely aided by a $443,600 federal grant the city received last year for workforce development.
Provided by the federal Delta Regional Authority, the money is being programmed to train 125 people a year in partnership with local businesses specifying what skills they need for their workers.
Gibson said the academy will be particularly helpful for training people to work at Loss Prevention Services, the automobile debt-servicing company in Natchez that employs more than 200 workers and needs more.
Original plans were to locate the coding academy at the Natchez-Adams school system’s Steckler building by the Natchez high and middle schools. However, that was scratched because it’ll house a new school of the arts, Gibson said.
He said ASU stepped in to make its large business school building at the university’s Natchez campus available for the academy.
Meeting Tuesday with Natchez Workforce Development Director Tuwanna Williams, Gibson and aldermen discussed the plans for the coding academy beginning classes in September.
Mississippi Coding Academies are already located in Jackson, Biloxi, Columbus and Clarksdale. Its executive director is Bob Buseck, a Natchez native who now lives in Brandon.
MCA was founded in 2017 as a joint project between Innovate Mississippi and the Mississippi Development Authority. Its mission is to train software professionals for high-demand jobs, particularly in the state’s disadvantaged and underserved communities.
It has affiliations and support from Mississippi State University, the University of Southern Mississippi, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and several corporate partners.
For more information about MCA and to apply for classes, go to its website: mscoding.org
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