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Careers In Technology Event Slated For Thursday

   Students and others looking for a job in Information Technology can hear from a variety of people in the field this Thursday evening in Pensacola.

"We're trying to make the connection of what it take beyond your education to either explore the field of IT, or earn a job in that field" said Michelle Horton, Director of the South Santa Rosa Center at Pensacola State College and Treasurer for the Innovation Coast. She’s talking about The Careers in Technology event this Thursday evening at 6 p.m. at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition in Pensacola. She says the event is aimed at college students, military transitioners, job seekers and other who are interested in learning about careers in IT.

During the event, people will hear from a variety of local leaders about all aspects of an IT job search and career. Escambia County Commissioner Doug Underhill will give the keynote address. He will be followed by a panel discussion featuring local business leaders. Panelists will include Paul Carney, manager of talent acquisition for Navy Federal Credit Union; Harry Huelsbeck, a cybersecurity analyst with Northrop Grumman; Lanessa Hunter, a software tester with IBM; Randy Ramos from Global Business Solutions and Vernon Niven, a veteran tech entrepreneur.

 Horton says the goal of the event is to share experiences from industry leaders that you won’t hear about in a classroom. "We want our students to walk away with a better understanding of how to approach the job search, how to better understand what would be expected from them from a career in some of these industries."

Local educators and businesspeople frequently talk about trying to keep good young talent from moving away. Horton thinks events like this one can help accomplish that. She say the Innovation Coast was formed by local leaders in the tech industry to address issue like that. "It was challenging for their organizations to find talented people and we want to retain the talent that we have here."

The careers in Technology event will be held this Thursday evening at 6 p.m. at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition in Pensacola. Seating is free but limited. You can reserve a seat at Eventbrite. If you cannot attend, the entire event will be live streamed and archived on YouTube. 

Bob Barrett has been a radio broadcaster since the mid 1970s and has worked at stations from northern New York to south Florida and, oddly, has been able to make a living that way. He began work in public radio in 2001. Over the years he has produced nationally syndicated programs such as The Environment Show and The Health Show for Northeast Public Radio's National Productions.