Wisconsin IT Students With Disabilities Honored at Award Night

Finding a viable path to college and a career can be hard enough on its own, but dealing with disabilities can make the process all the more discouraging. Luckily, there are organizations devoted to helping disabled students find the resources they need to make career success a reality, and AbilITy Connection is one of those organizations. A subsidiary of Goodwill Industries, the program provides support and opportunities like mentoring, financial aid, internships and career services for disabled students pursuing information technology degrees. Tomorrow, in Wisconsin, AbilITy Connection will be holding an awards ceremony to recognize some high achieving students in the field.

According to local news Brookfield Now, awards will be given out to five college students and graduates, all of whom are currently pursuing or have successfully earned an IT degree while also overcoming a disability. The five recipients will be presented with financial assistance awards, courtesy of AbilITy Connection, and the students’ mentors also will be recognized for the support they have provided to these successes.

The following students will be receiving this year’s awards:

• John Blimke, who attends Waukesha County Technical College and lives in Waukesha, Wis.
• Noelle Romashko, who holds an associate’s degree in Computer Programming from Milwaukee Area Technical College and lives in Waukesha, Wis.
• Andrew Stasey, who holds associate’s degrees in Computer Information Technology (Network Specialist and Microcomputer Specialist) from Waukesha County Technical College and lives in Waukesha, Wis.
• Larry Taylor, who holds an associate’s degree in Computer Electronics from Milwaukee Area Technical College, is working on an additional IT Programmer/Analyst associate’s degree and who lives in Milwaukee.
• Chuck Tripi, who holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and an associate’s degree in Computer Information Systems from Milwaukee Area Technical College and who lives in Brookfield, Wis.

Information systems, information technology, and computer programming degrees can go a long way in today’s technological landscape, and the right assistance and care can go a long way in making those degrees possible to attain. Congratulations to all who received an award this year, and good work to Goodwill for making it all happen.

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