Mexico City, 28 May 2015. – The first generation with ten students from the Cisco Networking Academy® in Ilumina Ceguera y Baja Vision ended their studies. This is the first Academy in Mexico that is fully focused to offer IT skills training for the blind and visually impaired persons, as well as their families, in order to offer tools that may help them to better job opportunities.

Ilumina is a private nonprofit organization developed by Fundación Villar Lledias IAP dedicated to the rehabilitation and education of children with blindness and low vision and also aims to train them in the use of adapted technology in order to foster their education, employment and social inclusion opportunities.

The academy in Ilumina offers IT Essentials curriculum in an e-learning platform that the institution has designed specifically for blind people. The ITE course provides an introduction to the computer hardware and software skills needed to help meet the growing demand for entry-level ICT professionals. Courses are delivered by personnel from Ilumina who received training as instructors, who can adapt the courses and materials according to students' needs.

Before being part of the Cisco® Networking Academy program, Ilumina, Ceguera y Baja Vision previously counted with a US$25,000 grant from Cisco Foundation, to support the organization to strengthen and develop skills for people with disabilities and their families in topics related with self-employment and to have the chance to start own business ventures. Since 2009, Ilumina has received volunteer and economic support to their activities from Cisco Mexico employees.

The Cisco Networking Academy is an IT skills and career building program for learning institutions and individuals worldwide. More than 5.5 million people have joined the Networking Academy and become a force for change in the global economy since 1997.

According to an IDC study, the demand for networking skilled professionals currently outstrips supply, and this tendency will be prevalent throughout the following years in Latin America. In 2015, IDC estimated that Mexico will have a shortage of approximately 115,000 professionals with networking skills. The Internet of Everything will generate unparalleled demand for skilled workers and opportunities for creative, tech-savvy people everywhere.

Fast Facts:

• The Networking Academy identifies and develops the skills that people and businesses need to thrive in a changing economy. The courses provide in-depth technology training to prepare for certification, and encourage students to solve problems and work together, just as they will in the workplace. The curriculum is translated into multiple languages and delivered via an online learning platform to make the experience both personally relevant and globally recognized.
   
• The Cisco Networking Academy community of support and training centers prepares local instructors to coach and mentor students in hands-on labs and supports consistent implementation of the program, and partnerships with employers and community agencies help students transition from classroom to career path.

• Courses are offered in 170 countries. About 180,000 students in more than 25 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean are opting to gain ICT skills and to improve their career prospects.

• The program in Mexico is one of the largest worldwide, with 374 academies in the country and nearly 55,000 students.

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