1776 today announces a partnership with
General Assembly (GA), a N.Y.-based startup that provides training in technology, business and design. The partnership will allow 1776 members to take GA classes, workshops and long-format courses at the 1776 campus as well as online.
"From the point of [1776's inception]," says Evan Burfield, cofounder of 1776, "we've wanted to bring together resources to help badass companies grow and scale. We knew we wanted education to be a part of this, and all roads kept leading back to GA."
Jake Schwartz, cofounder and CEO of GA, says that the company had "considered going to D.C. one and a half years ago, but [the ecosystem] wasn't quite far enough along. Then 1776 exploded onto the scene and created a critical mass."
GA in D.C. will be housed on the 8th floor at 1776. Beginning in October,
four courses will be offered, including
Intro to the D.C. Startup Community. Burfield says that particular course is a response to the question he sees posted on various media platforms on a regular basis: How do I get involved in the D.C. startup scene? "It's a welcome for total newbies," he explains. It's also free.
GA/1776 offerings will vary in price. The most expensive—a 12-week, full-time immersive course with an "attached" apprenticeship will run $11,500. Most are much less—a three-evening course called Fundamentals of Startup Law is $75 and a day-long UX Design Bootcamp is $100.
Burfield believes that offering a way for people to get highly technical skills once they leave the traditional classroom, especially if they are changing careers, is important. "We [in D.C.] have no trouble attracting talented people," he says, "but [career] growth is in cutting-edge digital skills, which people don't always have."
Schwartz says that the need for an entrepreneurial mind- and skill-set go beyond the startup realm. "Large corporations are looking for this type of talent pool," he explains. "They're looking for people who think and act entrepreneurially and can work on cross-functional teams. Large companies are facing the same talent crunch."
"Every industry is struggling to find a leaner method of operating," explains Burfield. "They're looking for people who can work fast, are cross functional and can [execute] elegant design. We wanted to go with an [educational] partner who would provide substantive solutions to these problems."