The U.S. Department of Education is offering a new way for low-income students to access software career training in Wilmington.
A Department of Education initiative called the Educational Quality through Innovative Partnerships (EQUIP) will now allow students to use Federal Pell Grants at the nonprofit coding school Zip Code Wilmington.
These grants are awarded to low-income students who demonstrate financial need. Zip Code Wilmington Head of School Melanie Augustin said this will remove a financial barrier for some students.
“For some students who might have been limited by the $2,000 tuition amount, this makes it accessible for students who wouldn’t have been able to come here before,” said Augustin.
Zip Code Wilmington is a 12-week coding bootcamp that places about 90 percent of its graduates into high-paying software careers. You don’t need a college degree to attend.
Students who attend the Zip Code bootcamp will also earn a semester of credits at Wilmington University.
The EQUIP program was designed by the Obama administration last year to make non-traditional education more affordable.
The partnership between Zip Code Delaware, Wilmington University and HackerRank was one of eight groups nationwide selected to participate in the EQUIP program.
