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Indianapolis, Ind. — ������Ƶ today announced it received the 2024 Community Impact Award at the 25th annual TechPoint Mira Awards gala on April 26. ������Ƶ was recognized for the Ivy+ IT Academy, a program that fills a crucial gap in Indiana's rapidly expanding tech sector by providing accelerated IT training to Indiana residents.

In partnership with Google and , the Ivy+ IT Academy enrolled more than 2,600 Hoosiers in free Google Career Certificates in cybersecurity, IT support, digital marketing, project management, data analytics and UX design. Following this success, the Academy piloted two CompTIA A+ certification courses in partnership with ������Ƶ’s Muncie campus and saw a 100% pass rate. The Ivy+ IT Academy will launch new courses in CompTIA A+, IT fundamentals, agile/scrum, artificial intelligence and more across the state this fall. Curriculum is aligned to the workforce needs of leading tech employers such as Google, Salesforce and Microsoft.

“������Ƶ understood that for Indiana to truly become the Silicon Heartland, we needed to scale and accelerate the number of Hoosiers receiving flexible and market-relevant IT skills training,” said Matthew Etchison, senior vice president and chief information officer, ������Ƶ. “With plans for continuous expansion and the introduction of new training programs, the Ivy+ IT Academy is quickly becoming a cornerstone in Indiana's tech education landscape, empowering individuals and fueling the state's economic growth.  Aligned with ������Ƶ’s mission to have education and skills training available to all Hoosiers, the Ivy+ IT Academy was created to allow our fellow citizens an easily accessible, affordable, and available IT skills training option that just did not exist before.”

The awards gala was presented by TechPoint, Indiana’s industry-led growth initiative for the state's digital innovation economy, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, Salesforce and a host of the state’s most innovative companies, universities and organizations.

The Community Impact Award recognizes the contributions of mission-driven organizations that have helped propel the state’s tech community forward while creating a brighter, more equitable future for everyone. The Mira judges were impressed with the Ivy+ IT Academy’s emphasis on reaching underserved demographic groups: 55 percent of graduates identify as Asian, Black, or Latino, and 71 percent of interest in the program came from women.

“������Ƶ’s initiative also stands out for its comprehensive career support, connecting graduates with an employer group of over 150 companies,” the judges said.

Winners in 18 award categories were chosen by a rigorous process that included 50 Mira Awards judges who winnowed applications to finalists, who presented their cases in March. The Mira Awards are the state’s largest, best known and most prestigious technology awards. The annual gala celebrates the “Best of Tech” in Indiana. Judging panels were comprised of founders, executives, community leaders and subject matter experts for the TechPoint Innovation and Talent categories. Seven other awards were awards after deliberations by additional expert panels.

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