REGISTRATION LINK: g.co/GrowPennsylvania
PENNSYLVANIA — Today, Google announced that it is coming to cities and towns throughout Pennsylvania as part of the tech company’s Grow with Google initiative to help create economic opportunity in communities across the United States. The tour will consist of free, one-day events hosted by Grow with Google in local libraries to help job seekers and small business owners improve their digital skills.
Pennsylvania tour dates, cities and locations include:
Friday, Feb. 1, Erie — Erie County Public Library
- 9:00am to 4:30pm
- Blasco Library, 160 E. Front Street, Erie, PA
“Pennsylvania is home to a world class workforce that powers some of the strongest businesses in thecountry. I applaud Google’s move to help strengthen this workforce. I am hopeful that this initiative will help expand opportunity to those who are searching for employment or those looking to grow their own business,” said US Senator Bob Casey (D – PA).
“Pennsylvania is a center for innovation, entrepreneurship and manufacturing. By bringing the ‘Grow withGoogle’ tour to the state, we are making a commitment to help develop a skilled workforce that can meet the needs of Pennsylvania’s growing economy,” said Erica Swanson, Google’s Head of Community Engagement.
Pennsylvania is the first stop on Grow with Google’s national tour in partnership with America’s libraries. The tour will host digital skills workshops in libraries in all 50 states and will aim to support libraries’ digital skills offerings on an ongoing basis. Three quarters of public libraries assist patrons with job applications and interviewing skills, and 90% offer basic digital skills training.
In recognition of this, Grow with Google will deliver digital skills trainings directly to jobseekers and small businesses in their community. Google will also train library staff and nonprofit leaders on a range of Grow with Google’s free tools and curriculum they can use to help their patrons on a daily basis. Google staff will also lead hands-on workshops about online marketing for small businesses, search engine optimization, and spreadsheet basics. Attendees can also sign up for one-on-one training with Google staff.
Google is partnering with community organizations like Erie County Public Library, Free Library ofPhiladelphia, Shippensburg Small Business Development Center, Temple University Small Business Development Center, and York County Libraries as well as the American Library Association to ensure that Pennsylvanians across the state have ongoing access to free digitals-skills tools and resources for job-seekers, small businesses and more.
Launched in Pittsburgh in October, 2017, Grow with Google’s tour of Pennsylvania is a continuation of the company’s long commitment to creating economic opportunities in the state. Google has had an office in Pittsburgh since 2006 and has over 500 employees. In February, the company held a Google.org Impact Challenge in Pittsburgh, inviting area nonprofits to submit their boldest idea to create economic opportunity in the region. A panel of local advisors selected four finalists to receive $50,000 and the public selected the winner to receive an additional $50,000 grant.
The American initiative draws on Google’s 20-year history of building products, platforms, and services that help people and businesses grow. Through this initiative, Google aims to help everyone across America – those who make up the workforce of today and the those who will drive the workforce of tomorrow – access the best of Google’s training and tools to grow their skills, careers, and businesses.
“Erie County Public Library is excited to be a Grow With Google site in 2019. Blasco Memorial Library welcomes a wide range of community members, making it an ideal location to host digital skills training, which will give our residents the skills, the confidence and the inspiration to achieve their personal and professional goals. Erie County’s evolving economy makes it imperative for our workers to possess up-to-date digital skills, and this initiative promises to help our community prepare the workforce not just of today, but of tomorrow,” said Erin Wincek, Library Director.
Specifically, Grow with Google aims to help address the skills gap by preparing Americans for middle-skilljobs, positions that require some skills but not four year degrees. According to the National Middle Skills
Initiative, middle skills jobs account to 54% of Pennsylvania’s labor force. A recent study by Burning Glass and Capital One found that more than 8 in 10 middle-skill jobs (82%) require digital skills. Overall, middle-skill jobs average $20 per hour.
In their 2017 Economic Impact Report, Google announced that 60,000 organizations in the state generated $8.18 billion dollars in economic activity by using Google’s search and advertising tools. The full report details Google’s economic impact state-by-state, and features the stories of businesses fueling that growth, creating job opportunities, and transforming their communities.
According to the American Library Association, nearly three-quarters of public libraries assist their patrons with job applications and interviewing skills, 90% help their patrons learn basic digital skills, and just under half provide access and assistance to entrepreneurs looking to start a business of their own.
To learn more about the free event and to register, visit http://g.co/GrowPennsylvania. Space will be limited; so please register in advance.
