Real Impact stories spotlight the real difference people, programs and partnerships—across the system—make on the state’s economic, social and cultural well-being. For more, meet maker Jonathan Aminiel.
More than halfway through her apprenticeship at John Deere, Alejandra Landa’s nerves had subsided, but her excitement hadn’t.
“I don’t think I could have asked for a better team,” Landa said of the supplier relationship management crew. “They encourage me to ask questions. They work really hard, but they still take time to help me.”
Discovery Partners Institute’s software development apprentice program offers training, support, and connections. It serves eager learners—especially women and people of color—looking to shift to the careers of the future. Women hold only 25% of computing positions nationwide today, while Black and Latino/a populations make up less than 14% of Chicago's overall tech workforce. Part of the University of Illinois System, DPI focuses on increasing Chicago’s talent supply and driving equitable economic growth in the region.
Landa and her husband, Pablo Riquene, moved to Chicago in 2021 so she could pivot from sales to a computer science career. She was born in Mexico, and her family moved to Florida when she was 2. She admits it's tough to explain the work web developers do to create everything people view and do online.
“My immigrant parents are so proud, even though they don’t fully understand what I do,” she said. “My dad tells me he’ll still brag to all his friends when I get my first full-time developer job.”
Getting paid to learn
The chance to help tackle a pervasive societal issue prompted Morgan Diamond, director of workforce education, to work at DPI.
“People want to earn their way through the world, but not having money creates a cascading effect. Creating new pathways makes a meaningful difference,” she said.
Developer apprenticeship program participants receive a stipend of up to $2,500 a month. When Landa heard about that, she thought it was too good to be true.
“I felt fortunate to be paid while I learned. I could focus 100 percent on what DPI was teaching me, and we could pay the bills,” she said.
While early hands-on coursework was intense, Landa found the programming language Ruby exciting. From there, she was off and running.
“We’re looking for people who want to learn. Our goal is to embrace people where they are,” Diamond said. “Some people are taught to be apologetic for not having a degree, but their strengths and skills can be an advantage here.”
Eye on the future
In 10 years, Landa envisions being a senior developer with a master’s degree in cybersecurity. Mastering the problem-solving mentality that software development requires took some time. It paid off, earning Landa one of 11 spots at John Deere.
“The apprenticeship benefits trainees, but it’s ultimately a business solution. To have a real, sustainable impact, employers must see DPI as a strategic business partner that provides consistently strong talent,” Diamond said.
Keisha Barnes, John Deere Global IT DEI program manager, said: “Discovery Partners Institute is a great program that allows John Deere to have an alternative recruiting pipeline of talent that brings diverse and unique perspectives, which continues to propel innovation forward within tech.
One of Landa’s biggest apprenticeship accomplishments was adding a coding library to her coworkers’ developers’ toolkit.
“I hadn’t done advance work with React, but they had integrated Redux with other applications, so I could look at that for reference,” she said. “In time, I went from being nervous, scared, and overwhelmed to so proud of the work I had done.”
To share an Altogether Extraordinary story about the University of Illinois System’s impact, please message lmabry@uillinois.edu.
