Aircraft technical skills will be taught at the center. Image via Wikimedia Commons.

This morning, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announced Atlanta’s new Center for Workforce Innovation, a job training program that focuses on outcome-based education for in-demand jobs. The center will be located at the Atlanta Technical College.

The center’s philosophy is that success is found at the intersection of education and opportunity, which is why it will ensure students will not only develop the skills they’ll need in technical positions, but the exposure they’ll need to land potential careers, according to program materials.

The Center’s five partnering corporations – Delta Air Lines, The Home Depot, SunTrust, Intercontinental Exchange and Georgia Power –  will collectively invest an initial $2 million to pilot three career tracks at the center: aircraft technical skills, information technology and skilled trades, according to program materials.

This funding will pay for instructors, a tuition forgiveness program and tangential services including transportation vouchers, program materials state. Educational partners Year Up Atlanta and Per Scholas will also be on hand help ensure student success.

“As we now partner Atlanta’s leading corporations with one of the nation’s best technical college systems, Atlanta residents gain a newfound opportunity to acquire the skills needed to earn higher wages and better provide for themselves and their families,” Bottoms said in a statement. “The Center for Workforce Innovation is a remarkable stride towards [equipping residents for success], and I look forward to seeing Atlanta’s students graduate from the Center and into our workforce.”

WorkSource Atlanta, plans to provide tuition assistance of up to $10,000 for students that qualify, and all students can apply for a HOPE Career Grant for additional funding, according to program materials. The center will launch its pilot program with up to 200 students in the fall of 2019.