Emily Baker-King explains Thursday the app she and her partner, Mason Nesbitt, made during their time in the Interapt/Skills program.

GLASGOW – A program designed to teach Barren County High School students and adult community members skills needed for computer science careers held its first graduation just months after its first round of applications.

On Thursday evening, 35 graduates of the Interapt Skills program were recognized after four months of learning to code apps for iPhones and iPads.

Justin Browning, Barren County Interapt/Skills project manager, said the idea is to prepare students for tech careers they could potentially pursue in Barren County while working from home.

In Barren County, the workforce is made up mainly of manufacturing, agriculture, education and health care jobs. The district wants to help diversify the local economy, he said.

“All those opportunities we’re thankful for, but we also want to expand that,” he said. “We want to expand our economy, expand our local economy and provide opportunities that extend to the 21st century at a greater, deeper level. One of those areas is programming.”

The Interapt/Skills program is a partnership with Interapt LLC, a Louisville-based software development company that has also helped establish a program in Paintsville, he said.

In February, Barren County Fiscal Court contributed $30,000 to help fund the program.

Browning said the program has been entirely funded by three Barren County families and the district opted not to use fiscal court’s contribution.

The students are graduating with 500 to 600 work hours out of 2,000 that are needed for an industry certification that is recognized both federally and in Kentucky, Browning said.

The district is working to find industry partners willing to take the graduates on so they can earn the rest of those work hours.

“They’re highly marketable as is. Some companies don’t require any credentials,” he said.

Browning said the district will continue the program next semester.

Ankur Gopal, founder and CEO of Interapt, congratulated the graduates and spoke about how he wanted to establish the Interapt/Skills program to encourage people in his home state to pursue tech careers while staying in Kentucky.

“I knew, being from Owensboro and being one of those Kentuckians, that felt I had to leave to fulfill my career goals, to go to Chicago, Silicon Valley, D.C. or New York,” he said. “Well, I did that, I came home and I knew there was tremendous opportunity and tremendous intelligence right here in my home state.”

Gopal said he was happy for the graduates but wasn’t surprised by their completion of the program.

“I knew there was intelligence here. I think there was just lack of a bit of opportunity,” he said.

Jake Dillon, an adult learner with the program, said when he was working as an English tutor with the district that CheyAnne Fant, the district’s director of nutrition services, suggested he sign up for the program.

Dillon said he wanted to take a chance on learning a new skill and possibly starting a new career.

Dillon said he’s filled out job applications with companies that would allow him to work with web and app design. Though he hasn’t heard back from any of them, he is in awe of how quickly the program managed to teach him how to code.

“I really have no (prior) tech experience other than plugging stuff in but now I can code an app. I’m still amazed by what I can do now,” he said.

Kyle Houts, another adult learner in the program, said she signed up for the program after moving back to Glasgow to be closer to her family after living in Indiana for more than a decade.

Houts wants a long-term job that would allow her to stay in Barren County but has only been able to find work on a temporary basis.

“When I heard there was this program and it could lead to opportunities to work remotely, I was all on board,” she said.

Houts said she’s already been interviewed by a few companies that would allow her to work on web and app development projects at home.

“Now I’m going to interviews and I’m hoping that something comes up,” she said. “All the companies I talked to are really interested in this program.”