WTOP: D.C. software company BuildWithin has been awarded the Apprenticeship Building America grant through a federal program aimed at creating more apprenticeship programs across the country.
The company plans to create 10,000 apprenticeships for unemployed or underemployed employees across the D.C. region.
“We built out a program to make it easier for individuals to create and start and manage apprenticeship programs at scale,” said Will Lopez with BuildWithin. “What we really are doing is modernizing apprenticeship programs by using technology and bringing it into roles that typically didn’t have apprenticeship programs.
Yinka Bamiro heard about the program after college and decided to try it out.
“I applied and the rest is history. It definitely has laid a solid foundation,” Bamiro said. She’s now in the eighth month of her IT apprenticeship at a local company.
Participants earn salaries while learning during the yearlong program, and no educational qualifications or experience are required. They also receive free memberships for Lime bikes and scooters to get to and from the classroom.
“I was able to get confidence and really get experience,” Bamiro said.
Bamiro said it has been a life-changing experience, and she hopes to see others take a chance on themselves.
“The program will give you all that you need to succeed,” she said. “I have this to back it up, showing that I did it and I can do it.”
