EMPOWERING
LEADERS

LIFE LEADERS

FAMILY LEADERS

CAREER LEADERS

FREE career training. Land a new career in just 6 Months.

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Change Course

FREE TRAINING TO GET YOU ON THE PATH TO A NEW CAREER

Change Course is a career development program that provides training in highly sought-after skills along with leadership and personal development, to give people in Des Moines a way to stop living paycheck to paycheck and launch a career.

Affordable, effective, and short-term career training is almost impossible to find. Change Course has identified highly sought-after careers in our community. We offer free training and pay you to start a new career in as little as four months. Students who have completed the program in other areas of the country are earning on average more than $18 per hour in jobs with upward mobility and full benefits, including health care and paid vacation time.

Freedom Awaits

Change Course graduates complete the program with a new job skill, a livable wage career, and a strong sense of community and support. After graduation, Leaders join the Alumni Association where they will receive continued services, including financial coaching, professional development opportunities, and the opportunity to give back to future Leaders.

Change Course CEO, Joseph Johnson’s testimony

LEADERSHIP JOURNEY

Leaders apply and are accepted into a six-month-long program broken into three phases.

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GROWTH

The first 6 weeks of the program is dedicated to personal and professional growth. We don’t just want Leaders to land a job—we want them to be the best version of themself, so they can find a career that lasts!

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CERTIFICATION

Leaders work to complete a professional certification or pre-apprenticeship course in their selected career track.

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LAND THE JOB

Once Leaders complete the certification stage, they graduate the program by landing a job in their career track. We’ll work to connect them with employers and jobs that fit their skill set.

Tools for Development

  • One-on-one coaching sessions
  • 100+ hours of personal development
  • Up to 35 life and career skills taught

If you’d like more information regarding Change Course, click the button below.

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CAREER PROGRAMS

A better future awaits our leaders after they complete their chosen six-month career training program. Change Course offers 35 life and career skills that can be adjusted according to the need of the Des Moines area job market. Our corporate partners keep us informed of the skills they look for in good job candidates as their needs change.

Energy Career with Change Course

Energy

Medical admistration

Medical Administration

Semi driver with CDL (Commercial drivers license)

Commercial Driver (CDL)

Information Technology (IT) Worker

Information Technology

Customer Service Representative

Customer Service

Construction Trades - Electrician working on building

Skilled Trades

Administration Assistant

Administrative Assistant

Certified nursing assistant (CNA)

Medical Healthcare

Culinary Services - Future Course

Culinary Services

Animal Care - Future Course

Animal Care

Customer Service Representative

Customer Service

Animal Care - Future Course

Animal Care

FREE career training with Change Course. Land a new career in just 6 Months.

If you’d like more information, click the button below.

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FOUNDING SPONSORS

Foster Group - Change Course Founding Sponsor
Emerge Academy logo with bird
Foster Group - Change Course Founding Sponsor
Shindler Anderson Goplerud and Weese PC Logo
Foster Group - Change Course Founding Sponsor

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Kim SmithBoard Member

Kim L. Smith grew up in the Des Moines area and has practiced law in West Des Moines for over 30 years. He also spent over 5 years with an international CPA firm. He is President of K. L. Smith, P.C., a successful law firm that handles tax planning and compliance, estate planning and documentation, and helps small businesses in planning and organization.

He and his wife, Carol, enjoy time with their 2 children and 3 grandchildren, who all live nearby. They also assist their parents, who also live in the area.

Kim is on the Board of Hope Ministries. He volunteers on the worship team at church also sharing his love of singing with local assisted living centers. He also enjoys playing tennis.

Ally Application

Thomas BudlerBoard Member

Tom Budler retired from the Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company family of businesses in February 2022 after 35 years of service. Tom worked for MidAmerican Energy Company for 25 of those years in various capacities including generation construction and operations, gas and electric operations, and wind generation development, construction, and operations. In 2012 Tom transitioned to BHE Renewables, LLC where he was responsible for growing its nationwide wind generation portfolio. In 2015 he also assumed additional responsibility to initiate, grow and manage BHE Renewables’ tax equity investment portfolio.

Tom has been married to his wife Cindy for 25 wonderful years and they reside in Norwalk, Iowa. He is a member of Valley Evangelical Free Church and volunteers regularly with the Hand-In-Hand Special Needs Ministry and the Valley Disaster Relief team.

Jerry & Nancy FosterBoard Members

Jerry and Nancy Foster have been married for 44 years and reside in Des Moines, Iowa. They have four children and numerous grandchildren.

Jerry is the founder of Foster Group, which is a wealth management firm, serving over 1,500 families and organizations. He is also the author of LifeFocus; Achieving a Life of Purpose and Influence. Nancy has dedicated her life to pouring into her family and mentoring women all over the world.

Together, Jerry and Nancy spoke with FamilyLife marriage conferences for over 22 years. They’ve also been involved in the development of a sustainable economic and personal development model in El Rosario, Guatemala with several other couples. They are passionate about helping change the paradigm for others and creating sustainable life change.

Karin JohnsonChange Course Director of Programs & Board Member

Karin and Joseph have been married for 42 years with four kids and six grandchildren. Karin was a gymnastics coach for 25 years with a passion to help young people achieve their goals through structure and hard work. Her love for the kids made her very successful in developing very competitive teams.

Responding to a conviction that the next generation of leaders needs to understand how to use the bible as their guide, Karin began teaching a weekly millennial generation bible study over 15 years ago which still continues today.

Using her gifts of teaching and mercy, Karin has counseled women and struggling marriages for many years after experiencing many challenges in her own family from marriage struggles to family member addiction, recovery, and incarceration.

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Change Course is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit.
All donations are deductible to the full extent of the law.

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