Anoka County Libraries Offer Computer Training to Jobseekers

For the first time, the Anoka County Library is offering computer classes for jobseekers. The classes start in September at the and the Northtown Branch nearby in Blaine. There is no fee but space is limited and registration is required. 

The four separate courses covering a range of skills—essential computer skills, introduction to the internet, email basics, and introduction to Microsoft Word—are all geared toward people seeking a new or better job. 

Staff from the Science Museum of Minnesota will teach the classes, as part of a Metropolitan Library Service Agency (MELSA) program.

People looking for work already visit libraries to find jobs, said library spokesperson Monica Campbell. "Everybody's showing up in our libraries," she said, coming to use jobseeking resources such as JobNow, which provides online coaching. 

"We're pretty excited," Campbell said, because the library hasn't before offered classes in computer skills. 

“These are tough economic times and the competition for good jobs is stiff,” said Anoka County Commissioner Jim Kordiak in a statement from the library. “Libraries help people expand their horizons, and these classes may put a little hope on the horizon as well.”

Here is the schedule of courses this fall at the Mississippi and Northtown branches. A second round of classes will start next year. To sign up, visit the library's website or call 763-717-3267.

The Anoka County Library is also offering computer classes at the Crooked Lake Branch in Coon Rapids and (under a separate program) the Rum River Library in Anoka. 

The library chose to offer the classes at branches with the greatest number of computers and in areas with the greatest need, Campbell said. The Mississippi Branch has 10 computers and the Northtown Branch has 12 that can be grouped for a class.