TCM Academy and Tomorrow Trust partnership pays dividends

March 10, 2010   

The TCM Academy’s drive to help South Africa’s disadvantaged youth use information and communications technology (ICT) to realise their potential has been greatly strengthened through its collaboration with the Tomorrow Trust. During 2010, some 40 of the Tomorrow Trust’s beneficiaries embarked on training through the TCM Academy.

Social responsibility and skills-generation programmes like the TCM Academy fulfil a vital role in developing the skills that society needs—and changing the mindset of its young people. TCM is an established ICT solutions provider and, through its TCM Academy, trains and mentors people from disadvantaged backgrounds. “TCM Academy’s success since 2007 has seen a steady rise in the number of applications we receive,” said Farah Wally, manager of the TCM Academy. “In order to stay focused on our core objective, which is to provide quality education to individuals who lack the skills to realise their career dreams, the TCM Academy began to collaborate with the Tomorrow Trust, which now services the Academy’s recruitment arm.”

Tomorrow Trust provides supplementary education, mentoring programmes and career guidance to vulnerable and underprivileged children of school-going age. On completion of matric, the organization depends on its network to assist in placing and funding the children’s skills advancement. By understanding the aptitude of each child, Tomorrow Trust is able to capitalize on the strengths of each individual to ensure a bright future for the children and the continent.
“That made for a perfect synergy between TCM Academy and Tomorrow Trust.

We are committed to playing our role in investing in the talent which will create South Africa’s future. To that end, we take on learners who have an aptitude for the ICT industry and help them on their way to a meaningful qualification—and we rely on the Tomorrow Trust to help us find those learners,” says TCM Academy’s Wally.

Wally says graduates enjoy vendor and ISETT SETA training programs endorsed by an in-house mentorship track which sees the students of TCM Academy assigned to an experienced TCM engineer. This element of the program allows students to enter the job market not only with internationally recognized certifications but with a wealth of knowledge and experience gained in a live environment.

“This year, over 30 Tomorrow Trust beneficiaries will attend our IT Essentials programme and NQF Level 5 System Support Learnerships. Slowly, one person at a time, TCM is providing our young people with the skills they need to take this country to the next level!”