Tag: veterans
Updated LearnKey Veteran Services Website
If you’ve been paying attention, you may have noticed that our LearnKey Veteran Services website (www.veterans.learnkey.com) has been updated since yesterday. This is more than a mere update; it is a redesign of the existing website. The goal of this new design was two-fold:
- Adjust the colors of the LKVS website to be more universal to all branches of the military
- Bring the design of the LKVS website into harmony with the recently updated LearnKey.com design
I believe we have accomplished our goal. We used the stylesheet from the new LearnKey website design, but changed the colors so as to set the LKVS site apart from the regular LearnKey website. We also moved away from the camouflage design we were using in the old design, deciding instead on a red, white, and blue color scheme to suggest the American flag.
Two new features of the redesigned LearnKey Veteran Services site are the new Student Resource Center page and the Live Chat option. The live chat option allows students the option of chatting with a VR&E counselor to get answers to time-sensitive questions, while the Student Resource Center provides information on resources available to LKVS students and advisors. This page will be updated from time to time as more resources become available.
Remembering September 11th
For many people, the mere mention of a specific date can often bring a tide of memories and emotions rising to the surface. For those living in the United States of America, September 11th is one of those dates. Today marks the thirteenth year since all America watched in horror as the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center collapsed, killing nearly 3000 people and plunging the world into the “War on Terror.”
Though I was nowhere near ground zero, I have written several times over the years about my experiences in the aftermath of the attacks. I was living in California at the time, 2500 miles away from New York City, but the aftershocks of the attacks could be felt in the local community for months afterwards. For those Americans of Middle Eastern descent the fallout lasted much longer, and many American troops continue to suffer the effects of the attacks.
United States President George W. Bush proclaimed September 11, 2002, as Patriot Day. Each year since 2009, President Barack Obama has proclaimed the day Patriot Day and National Day of Service and Remembrance. In honor of all those killed in the attacks, and in the many battles which have been fought since, we fly our flags at half-mast. Take a moment out of your busy day today to remember those killed on September 11th or visit with a Veteran and thank them for their service.
Two beams of light represent the former Twin Towers of the World Trade Center during the 2004 memorial of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
CompTIA’s CASP – A Fast Track to an IA Career?
As the Veteran Services Manager at LearnKey, I work with Veterans from all over the world who are looking for ways to get into the security side of IT when whey separate from the military. Everyone knows about the CISSP certification and what that means to those who are looking to go big in an IA (Information Assurance) career. Everyone looks at the benefits of the CISSP yet they also know that it comes with an extensive exam. Don’t get me wrong, I am pro-CISSP and we help a lot of Veterans to achieve that level of certification. I do, however, want to talk about the CompTIA CASP certification and how it can jump-start the IA career you have been dreaming of.
The Advanced Security Practitioner certification from CompTIA (CASP) is a relative newcomer to the IA world. It is CompTIA’s first certification at the professional level and it was designed to fill the gap between their Security+ and the ISC2 CISSP certifications. The CISSP is often described as being a “mile wide and an inch deep” which perfectly describes every manager I have ever worked for. Yes, the CISSP is a management level certification which is great, but probably not the place you will likely start out in your new career. The CASP on the other hand is where the rubber hits the road. It includes the skills and objectives needed to keep everything running with the good guys on the inside and the bad guys put out in the cold. Here is a great video that CompTIA put together to illustrate what I am talking about:
CASP covers the latest in cryptographic applications, vulnerabilities, virtual storage, secure DNS, network design, firewalls, risk management, VoIP, and more. Those who possess the CASP certification work on the front lines, protecting and defending their networks. This is certainly the reason why the DoD directive 8570 was recently updated and they pushed the CASP certification up to the mid and high levels within their baseline approval structure (https://iase.disa.mil/eta/iawip/content_pages/iabaseline.html).
Although the CASP exam is not easy, it is much less strenuous of an exam than the CISSP. It also doesn’t come with the difficult-to-prove prerequisites. Listen to what Tom Carpenter, published author and consultant, has to say about the CASP certification and what it means to you:
The bottom line here is that both certifications are great but you really need to consider taking things in a logical order. I am excited to help our Veterans to (metaphorically) kick down the doors between them and a great career in IA, starting with the CASP certification.
CEO Open Letter: “Vet to Tech” Program helping U.S. Veterans get Job Ready
Just over two years ago I took over the role as CEO of LearnKey, Inc, a trusted educator for over 26 years. Our educational courseware has helped over a million students to acquire professional development education, career ready skills, and industry recognized IT certifications for career development, new job preparation and or advancement.
Looking back, one of the greatest experiences and most exciting things to see has been the creation of our LearnKey Veteran Services team – a three year old dedicated group of support and career counselors within the company who currently support over 100 U.S. veterans transitioning from the military who are ready to work in entry and advanced IT Technical Support positions. Most of these veterans started gaining IT experience in the service, and are now completing six to eight months of online education and achieving globally recognized IT certifications from CompTIA, Cisco, Microsoft, ISC², Mile2, and more. Most of them will have at least one (if not multiple) certifications in the coming weeks and they will be looking for employment opportunities.
We are not a recruiting company, and want no fee – just the opportunity to help these great job candidates, who served our country and are job ready, find rewarding IT career pathways in U.S. companies.
Help us find our returning veterans career paths – If you own, lead, or work for a company interested in interviewing these veterans and quality tech support candidates, please contact Brian Tremelling, LearnKey Veteran Services Program Manager (btremelling@learnkey.com) directly. Additionally, hiring veterans can allow employers to take advantage of tax incentives (when applicable) and many of the veterans who go through our program qualify.
Again, please join us in supporting our transitioning troops by interviewing one of our job ready veteran candidates for your IT support needs. There is no cost to tap into this network of talented individuals, only opportunity.
Thank you and with kind regards,
Jeff Coruccini
CEO LearnKey, INC.
Serving Those Who Serve
I have only been at LearnKey for a short time, but I am very excited to have the opportunity to be working with veterans on a daily basis as part of the LearnKey Veteran Services team. Being a veteran myself and attending school full-time, I know how important it is to get an education and further your career.
When I first started at LearnKey my responsibility was to contact veterans who use our courseware and check on the status of their education twice a month. It was very rewarding for me to see the awesome changes in these veterans’ lives because of what they were learning from our courses. The more time I spent talking to them, the more excited I was about sharing the education resources we provide to my fellow battle buddies and all veterans. Now I have the opportunity to travel throughout the country seeking out veterans and spending time with them individually, introducing them to our exceptional educational programs.
Giving Back to Those Who Gave So Much
eLearning company forms partnership with foundation that provides assistance for Veterans in need.
St. George, UT- November 16, 2012- LearnKey Inc, in partnership with Our Home Transitional, have recently begun working together to give assistance to female Veterans and their children. LearnKey has donated video based training through their learning management system OnlineExpert, to those in OHT as a way to help our Veterans to obtain the civilian credentials they need to re-enter the workforce.
Carrie Miller, Executive Director of OUR HOME TRANSITIONAL explains: “This is a place where our female veterans and their kids come to when they are facing challenge & are in need of a place to call home.”
Women Veterans in need of OHT services are not limited to the Flint, Michigan area. As long as there are rooms available any woman hero from anywhere in the US will be assisted, says Miller. “One of the most integral parts of this program for our female Veterans is the LearnKey training component. We are very excited to be working with LearnKey in our endeavor to help women heroes who are in need of help while transitioning successfully to civilian society and self-sufficiency,” explains Miller.
LearnKey’s extensive course library has courses that will help learners pass certification exams, build resumes, and prepare for a career. Some valuable LearnKey tools for Veterans are the recently released Career Readiness Bundle and Job Hunting in a Digital World course.
LearnKey regularly releases new courses. Follow this link to view the 2012-2013 course release schedule.
About LearnKey, Inc.
LearnKey is self-paced video courseware for corporate, education, government and personal users. Established in 1987, LearnKey offers decades of experience with engaging, interactive, and flexible training that is accessible anytime, anywhere.
New “Certify for Life” program available for Veterans
We have recently implemented a new program for veterans who certify through our Veteran Services program – it’s called Certify for Life. This is an excellent new program that can help save veterans hundreds if not thousands of dollars throughout the course of their career.
The way this program can help save veterans money is by giving them free courseware updates for the rest of their life. So, in four to five years when technology advances and makes certain certifications out of date, the veteran doesn’t have to pay for courseware again, they don’t have to try to get the VA to cover the courses and they don’t have to pay out of pocket either – all they have to do is call LearnKey and let them know that they are in the Certify for Life program and LearnKey will get them set up with the current courseware in their area of study for free.
eLearning Company Announces Free Training for U.S. Veterans
LearnKey’s “Certify for Life” program enables qualified U.S. veterans to receive video-based training, free of charge, after they’ve completed their initial training certifications through VA-sponsored programs such as VR&E and VRAP.
ST. GEORGE, UT, May 11, 2012 /24-7PressRelease/ — LearnKey, a global provider of self-paced online training, today announced “Certify for Life,” a new program that provides free education for qualifying U.S. veterans. Certify for Life is available to veterans who participate in Vocational Rehabilitation & Employment (VR&E), Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP) and VOW to Hire Heroes programs offered through the Veterans Administration.
Visit veterans.learnkey.com for more information on our Veteran Services program.
Tech jobs are the most popular among veterans
A recent article by PayScale recognizes the difficult task of returning to civilian employment after military service, and in an effort to ease the confusion, asked the question, “Where do military veterans usually work after finishing their service?”
The result? Veterans typically go to jobs where they can apply the skills they learned in the military, which turn out to be mainly tech jobs. PayScale measured the top fifteen most common, well paid, and quickly growing professions veterans choose, and also the top ten job skills veterans report having, and found that while some of the jobs were leadership and medical positions, many of the jobs and skills had one thing in common – they were mostly in information technology or other tech-related fields.
Here is a sample of the data – the top five job skills veterans report having:
- Emergency Room (ER)
- Computer Security
- Microsoft SQL Server
- Electronic Troubleshooting
- Security Risk Management
Read the full article for more information, including the full list of top job skills, and the titles, average salaries, and projected job growth of each of the top fifteen job roles.
Veteran benefits provide certifications and new job skills through LearnKey courseware
I just want to write a few words about a friend of mine that I met through our VA vocational rehabilitation program. Chris and I were introduced over this last summer when he began using the LearnKey program to advance his IT career. At the time, he was working in an IT role, but in a limited, part time position. Over several months of interaction, I have come to think of Chris as a friend as our whole group has been following his progress and cheering his success. In January, I was able to meet Chris face to face as he came into our recording studio to shoot a testimonial video. It was a great experience to get better acquainted and to learn that Chris served as a combat engineer in Baghdad, the same role in which my father served during WW2.