Workforce Readiness

Community Colleges to Bolster IT Training Programs with New Microsoft Datacenter Academy

• By Rhea Kelly
• 10/19/20

Estrella Mountain Community College (EMCC) and Glendale Community College (GCC) are collaborating with Microsoft to launch a new Microsoft Datacenter Academy designed to prepare students for high-demand jobs in the IT sector. Their goal: "to enhance the IT training programs at both schools and provide real-world applications for students in their attainment of current and new IT certifications and degrees," according to a news announcement.

Located on the EMCC campus, the Microsoft Datacenter Academy will serve students from both colleges beginning in fall 2021. Microsoft will donate equipment for the facility, including servers, storage devices and networking gear, to provide students with hands-on experience with industry-standard hardware. In addition, the company is building three datacenters that will provide job opportunities in the local area.

"We are always looking for ways to better prepare our students for in-demand IT jobs," said EMCC President Rey Rivera, in a statement. "This collaboration with Microsoft will not only help to fill a void in the IT job market but will also provide our students with additional streamlined pathways to these high-paying jobs, many of which will be located right here in the West Valley where three Microsoft datacenters will open in the near future."

"Estrella Mountain Community College and Glendale Community College are striving to educate, train and prepare our students for the fast-paced changes happening in the workplace," commented Teresa Leyba Ruiz, president of GCC. "That is why we are so proud to team up with Microsoft in establishing the Datacenter Academy at our colleges. We are excited that Microsoft is firmly committed to the West Valley by building datacenters in Goodyear and El Mirage and supporting EMCC and GCC as we prepare students for careers in the growing IT industry."