As Communities Rebuild, New Horizons Offers New Summer Program to Introduce More Than 100 Local Students to Highly Sought-After Graphic Design Skills
Miami, FL — April 30, 2021 – New Horizons Computer Learning Centers of South Florida has partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami (BBBS Miami) to offer students a free, virtual opportunity to learn Graphic Design skills taught by premiere Photoshop artists.
“The past year has been uncertain for everyone, but New Horizons South Florida is committed to utilizing our resources to continue to strengthen our local communities,” said Dwayne Sparks, Vice-President, Technology, and Sales for New Horizons South Florida. “For the past 25 years, New Horizons has been committed to strengthening South Florida by funneling strong and capable professionals into the local workforce and, we look at this opportunity to introduce students to a possible career field that will eventually funnel back into our community when the time comes.”
The program is currently offered virtually to small groups of 10-12 BBBSM students that meet weekly. The sessions last from 1.5- to 2-hours and consist of specific lessons on a different Photoshop skill, followed by real-time opportunities to complete a creative project that utilizes those new skills tied back to a relevant comic book character. In addition to finishing the program with a portfolio of completed projects, students demonstrate their competency through a testing program to evaluate baseline knowledge and understanding. Each participant also receives a certificate of completion to document their learning and add to their portfolio.
“COVID-19 has forced us to pivot how we operate as an organization, and we are grateful to our partners throughout our South Florida community for joining us in Keeping Kids Connected and continuing to inspire our greatest asset, the next generation,” said Gale Nelson, BBBS Miami President and CEO. “We deeply appreciate New Horizons of South Florida for providing a fun and educational outlet for our Littles to ignite their potential and strengthen our community.”
Funding for the program was provided by the Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation. The grant was awarded in recognition of Comcast’s commitments to the communities where its customers and employees live and work.
“It is critical for youth to be prepared to enter the workforce armed with digital skills like the ones they are learning through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami,” said Marta Casas-Celaya, Director of External Affairs for Comcast in Miami. “Comcast is proud to continue our longtime partnership with BBBSM to support efforts that increase technology access and expand digital skills in our communities.”
Since 1958, BBBS Miami has been South Florida’s premier nonprofit mentoring organization. BBBS Miami ignites the power and promise of youth through a combination of one-to-one and group mentoring programs that promote equity and social justice.
New Horizons offers students the resources of the world’s largest IT training company and the support of a local partner connected to their community workforce needs. With flexible career training and certification opportunities, students can learn various skill sets needed to become successful and work toward a career in IT and focus on professional development.
To learn more about New Horizon’s career training opportunities and read through customer testimonials, you can visit www.newhorizons.com/career-training. For real-time news and updates follow New Horizons of South Florida on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram to join the conversation.
ABOUT NEW HORIZONS COMPUTER LEARNING CENTERS OF SOUTH FLORIDA
New Horizons IT and Business Training solutions have kept businesses—from startups to global enterprises—ahead of the technology curve for nearly 40 years. The New Horizons Global Franchise network spans six continents and over 30 countries. New Horizons provides a measurable return on any company’s training investment while our learning methods meet the styles, demands, and schedules of today’s management and employees. New Horizons combines the resources of the world’s largest IT training company with the responsiveness of a local partner. New Horizons is certified as an AWS Training Partner, Citrix Authorized Learning Center, Cisco Partner for Platinum Learning Solutions, CompTIA Authorized Platinum Partner, Microsoft Partner with a Gold Learning competency, RedHat Business Partner, and VMware Authorized Training Center. For more information, visit www.newhorizons.com
ABOUT BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF MIAMI
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami (BBBS Miami) creates and supports one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth. Rooted in social justice work that aims to keep youth out of the criminal justice system, BBBS Miami ignites the potential within each and every child and advocates for them to explore the endless possibilities of what they can accomplish. For more than 60 years, BBBS Miami has been South Florida’s premier mentoring organization, defending the potential of future leaders in the community by matching at-risk youth (Littles) with committed adult mentors (Bigs). These relationships – strategically matched based on Littles’ needs and Bigs’ backgrounds and skills, as well as common interests and personalities – empower Littles to achieve success in life and become productive members of the community.