Austin technology program wins federal grant

In promising news from the U.S. Department of Labor, Austin — along with Roanoke, Virginia, and Columbus, Ohio — will be the recipient of a TechHire grant for its Goodwill Careers in Technology (CiT) program. The CiT program, which is currently active in all three cities, prepares participants for high-growth IT career pathways and “aims to specifically recruit underrepresented groups in the technology field, including women, African-Americans and Latinos.” The total amount in TechHire grants announced by the Department of Labor was $150 million, of which the Goodwill Careers in Technology program received $4 million. In a statement about the TechHire grant, Mayor Steve Adler said, “Austin is an innovative city. We lead Texas in patents, startup and venture capital. We need to be just as innovative in helping our residents take advantage of the opportunity and prosperity all around them or we will never get our arms around the affordability crisis, and this TechHire grant is going to help us do just that.”