Tag Archives: Mayor Lightfoot

Chicago and Microsoft Partner for Digital Training

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On October 1, Microsoft announced a new partnership with Chicago to provide free digital skills training courses for at least 300,000 residents.

 “Accelerate Chicago,” is meant to boost the employability of Chicago citizens who either lost their jobs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic or those who have few digital skills at all. It will also offer “cross-training” for those looking to pivot their career paths. Accelerate includes free courses on several Microsoft applications and programs.

Lori Lightfoot, Mayor of Chicago, explained that the new program will allow the city to remedy the “socioeconomic fallout” of the COVID-19 pandemic by offering participants “good-paying, sustainable” jobs.

“We have an important opportunity to use this moment to better the lives of those who were struggling long before this pandemic ever struck.”

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, at a news conference with Microsoft President Brad Smith.

Accelerate has already been launched in New York, Atlanta, Houston, and Louisville, Kentucky.

Video Conferencing City Council Meeting

Infrastructure,

In an unprecedented move, the Chicago City Council held a meeting using Zoom video conferencing.  This is the first time this has ever been done.  In “attendance” were 48 aldermen and Mayor Lori Lightfoot, the latter who chaired the meeting from her City Hall office.  In addition, people from the public were invited to submit comments by phone or email.

On the agenda was one topic – an official amendment to the City Council’s rules  of how such meetings are conducted, thus permitting the use of virtual attendance.  The meeting lasted less than an hour.

Very little was discussed except to set the next City Council meeting for April 22.  However the Mayor was urged by members of the public to shut down the Chicago River scrapyard, General Iron Industries.