We Are LIT (Louisville Institute Technology) – Louisville, KY

• Mission Statement
  • The mission of the Louisville Institute of Technology is to prepare students and apprentices, through intense, immersive practical training, so that they may qualify for and attain employment in high-demand Information Technology technical fields and professions.

• Overview & History
  • Louisville Institute of Technology is a proprietary post-secondary education institution by the Kentucky Commission on Proprietary Education.
  • The Institute was founded on May 05, 2019, and began serving apprentices in July 2020, during the height of the Coronavirus 19 pandemic in the Louisville metro area. Operating as a community resource, and within months of beginning instruction, the Institute graduated and placed trained apprentices in Information Technology software development, systems management, and database engineering positions with major employers.
  • Louisville Institute of Technology’s training methods, curriculum, instructional schedule, and learning environment is designed to replicate the workplace conditions and expectations of an Information Technology enterprise. Students encounter a work-learning environment derived from apprenticeship models; their daily assignments require mastery of theory, digital languages, and system architecture that is applied immediately and directly to workplace-specific projects and tasks. Supervision, mentoring, and tutorials are provided as required and based on the education needs of the individual.
  • Workplace simulation and support are at the heart of the Institute’s training regime. From Day 1, student apprentices are expected to dress, behave, communicate, and perform as though they were employed by a professional or technical enterprise. The training and instructional schedule mimics that of a place of employment. Interpersonal encounters between cohorts and instructional staff are deliberately collaborative, supportive, professional, and focused on successful project completion.

• Ownership & Leadership
  • Louisville Institute of Technology is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Di Tran Enterprises, LLC with headquarters in Louisville, KY. DI Tran Enterprises, LLC owns and operates other licensed private post-secondary schools, as well as a variety of small businesses in the greater Louisville metropolitan area. The company has been a licensed operator of private post-secondary education since 2016. Di Tran Enterprises, LLC may be contacted at 612-568-3644.
  • The Louisville Institute of Technology is managed and operated by a capable team of post-secondary education and computer science professionals. Key individuals and their positions are:
    • Di Tran, President, and Chief Academic Officer

• Programs and Methods of Training
  • Louisville Institute of Technology prepares student apprentices through intense, immersive practical training. The content of the training is delivered and reinforced through a full range of modalities, including on-person lectures, workshops, and supervised laboratory encounters. Didactic and theory are delivered in-person and on-line, utilizing synchronous and asynchronous web-based platforms to augment and reinforce key concepts, computer language skills, system design principles, and project participation protocols.
  • The curriculum of LOUISVILLE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY is structured around a series of software development projects that challenge the student apprentice to design, create, test, and implement full-stack cloud-based applications that solve problems for real enterprises and systems. The instructional methodology is intense, focused, hands-on, and active. It requires strong engagement by the student apprentice in mastering theory, practical problem solving, and design collaboration.
  • A typical cohort is 15 – 20 student apprentices who work and learn together either on-line or in-person several hours a day, five days a week. Individual effort and success beget team project success, which in turn enables the cohort to advance to the next project and development challenges. Passive participation and lapses in attendance or contribution undermine team success and impede satisfactory academic progress.
  • The three programs offered by LOUISVILLE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY:
    • Software Developer. Design, build, test, and maintain cloud-based solutions, including enterprise applications and services through active collaboration with solution architects and customers. (12-weeks, 500 hours = LIT I-HAVE-DONE-IT BADGE)
    • Platform Administrator. Implement, monitor, and maintain cloud-based enterprise solutions, including computing capacity and functionality, data storage, network capabilities, and security. (16 weeks/670 hours = LIT Platform Administrator Certification)
    • Data Engineer. Design and implement the management, monitoring, security, and privacy of data using the full stack of data management resources available through cloud computing. (36 weeks/1500 hours = LIT Data Engineer Certification)
  • Hours earned in the LOUISVILLE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Full-Stack developer program may be applied toward partial fulfillment of requirements for LOUISVILLE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Platform Administrator Certification. Hours earned in LOUISVILLE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Platform Administration may be applied toward partial fulfillment of requirements for LOUISVILLE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Data Engineer Certification. LOUISVILLE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Data Engineer Certification may be accepted in transfer to partially fulfill the requirements for an associate degree in applied computer science at Jefferson Community & Technical College (JCTC), Campbellsville University, Sullivan University, and Stratford University of Alexandria, Virginia (on-line).

• Description of the “I HAVE DONE IT” Badge from Louisville Institute of Technology
  • The “I Have Done IT™” credential certifies the successful completion of a three-month, minimum of 420 hours (average 35 hours/week X 12 weeks) intensive, hands-on, self-directed, and independently paced apprenticeship program under the supervision and mentorship of experienced and professionally successful software development practitioners. It represents the apprentice’s independent development of at least four different functional applications that integrate with four or more different databases based on Microsoft technology, including current versions of .NET Core, Azure SQL, Azure DevOps, Azure Full-Managed Services, and GitHub. Applications developed by the apprentice include console application (for window service usage and intensive data processing), window presentation foundation (WPF) GUI based application, Web API (Web Service), and React Js web frontend application. This credential also certifies the apprentice has successfully completed the development of test automation on the Azure DevOps Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CICD) pipeline for unit testing, as well as some web API testing, and web front-end testing using Selenium technology.

• Admission Requirements
  • The following is required for a student apprentice to be admitted to an LIT program/course of study:
  • Completion and signature on the LIT enrollment agreement
    • State ID or driver license as proof of identity
    • Local address or most recent address
    • High school diploma or equivalent (GED) and at least 15 credits hours (one semester) in an accredited, college-level computer science program. Work experience of at least one year as a software developer in a cloud-based full-stack environment may substitute for the academic credit hours requirement. (Regarding foreign high school diplomas or transcripts, LIT will only accept the translated version of the high school diploma or transcript from an agency acceptable to the recognized accreditation community.)
    • Paid registration fee, which is due by the first day of class unless prior arrangements have been made.
    • For students re-entering the program, refer to LIT’s Satisfactory Academic Policy (SAP).
    • The applicants enrolling for this course must be free from contagious and infectious diseases and mentally and physically able to perform work required.

• Job Counseling and Student Support Services
  • LIT is a self-contained training and apprenticeship institution that leverages its institutional contacts and relationships with major employers to maximize employment opportunities for student apprentices. Typically, students encounter and participate in design projects with companies, institutions, enterprises, and community organizations during their course of study.
  • LIT does not guarantee placement. However, the resources and relationships of the institution are applied to maximize student opportunities for placement before, during and after completion of the program. LIT has established partnerships with community-based counseling, mental health, and substance-abuse intervention resources. Information about how to access these resources is made available to LIT students upon request or as appropriate.

• Graduation and Credentialing Requirements
  1. Certified I-HAVE-Done-IT Software Developer.
     1. Three-month apprenticeship, 6 to 8 hours a day, five days a week
     2. Successfully complete assigned Multi-Tier, enterprise-ready applications
     3. Demonstrate knowledge of end to end Software Development Lifecycle
     4. Demonstrate competency with front-end coding languages and platforms (Java, CSS, C#, HTML5)
     5. Successfully apply skills using NET Core, API, Azure, CICD, WPF, SQL, Microsoft Access, to complete development of assigned applications.
     6. Show competency in collaboration, including the use of Google Meet, Zoom, Visual Studio, Postman, Google Chrome.
     7. Mastery of security protocols, including Azure API, VNet, using private IP.
     8. Demonstrate ability to document and share solution architecture, including PowerPoint and Visio.
     9. Successful completion of LIT 101, 105 and 110
  2. Certified I-HAVE-Done-IT Platform Administrator.
     1. Four-month apprenticeship, 6 to 8 hours a day, five days a week
        1. Successfully complete assigned Multi-Tier, enterprise-ready applications
        1. Demonstrate knowledge of end to end Software Development Lifecycle
        1. Demonstrate competency with front-end coding languages and platforms (Java, CSS, C#, HTML5)
        1. Successfully apply skills using NET Core, API, Azure, CICD, WPF, SQL, Microsoft Access, to complete development of assigned applications.
        1. Develop complete written inventory and review of IT resources required for enterprise application and budget to acquire, lease or augment computing and network capacity.
        1. Create written plan to bring resources to bear through training, technical implementation and testing, application roll-out intervals, benchmarks and post-implementation performance benchmarks and milestones.
        1. Show competency in collaboration, including the use of Google Meet, Zoom, Visual Studio, Postman, Google Chrome.
        1. Show knowledge of security protocols, including Azure API, VNet, private IP.
        1. Demonstrate awareness of standards for documentation of cloud-based solution architecture.
        1. Show competency in convening, leading and documenting platform administration collaborations, problem-solving sessions, design dispute resolutions.
        1. Successful completion of LIT 101, 105, 110 and 220.
  3. Certified I-HAVE-Done-IT Data Engineer.
     • Nine-month apprenticeship, 6 to 8 hours a day, five days a week
       • Successfully complete assigned Multi-Tier, enterprise-ready applications
       • Demonstrate knowledge of end to end Software Development Lifecycle
       • Demonstrate competency with front-end coding languages and platforms (Java, CSS, C#, HTML5)
       • Successfully apply skills using NET Core, API, Azure, CICD, WPF, SQL, Microsoft Access, to complete development of assigned applications.
       • Show mastery of database software platforms design and interoperability, including M/S Access, SQL, Azure hosting capabilities, Source Code Version Control, etc.
       • Develop and document enterprise database workflow chart that identifies functions to be provided through IT, the characteristics of each application, its location, primary supervision, security measures and support infrastructure.
       • Develop and share professional plans for integrating dispersed and diverse database resources through appropriate network and digital infrastructure resources.
       • Create professional project management plan with goals, timeframes, assignments, and accountability milestones that can be shared with enterprise client.
       • Establish and test, for approval by client, a credible resource inventory that includes budget for equipment, facilities, personnel, and materials.
       • Show competency in collaboration, including the use of Google Meet, Zoom, Visual Studio, Postman, Google Chrome.
       • Show knowledge of security protocols, including Azure API, VNet, private IP.
       • Demonstrate awareness of requirements for documentation of cloud-based solution architecture.
       • Show competency in convening, leading and documenting platform administration collaborations, problem-solving sessions, design dispute resolutions.
       • Successful completion of LIT 101, 105, 110, 220 and 250
  4. Upon successful completion of all requirements listed above, student apprentices will receive a diploma of completion. The diploma will be signed and dated by the LIT administration and will include the student’s name, date of graduation, and indicate name of program completed.

• Financial Aid                 
  • LIT offers a variety of financing options to facilitate timely enrollment and facilitate apprenticeship progress and completion without disruptions due to lapses in remittance or excessive accumulation on financial balances owed to the institution:
    • Cash Option: Payments may be made in the form of cash, money orders, credit card or through non-federal agency loan programs. Credit/debit card payment will be added with 3% credit/debit card processing fee.
    • LIT Financial Aid: The institution will extend credit, at a zero-interest rate, to eligible students for tuition costs only. The monthly remittance must be made by the last day of each month for the student apprentice to be eligible to attend the subsequent month’s coursework, labs, internships, on-line instruction or in-person sessions. The average monthly payment depends on the amount to be financed, part-time versus full-time status, and student’s demonstrated credit worthiness.
    • Non-LIT Student Loans & Grants: Assistance to finance some or all the costs of tuitions and fees is available through various private lenders, state tuition supports programs, employer’s tuition assistance programs and other employer-based incentive programs. LIT Student Financial Aid can provide details and enrollment information for available programs. 
    • Federal Student Aid: Pell Grants and Subsidized Loans: LIT is developing an application to become accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Once that accreditation is achieved, LIT will become eligible to apply for participation in the Department’s FSA (Title IV) program, which provides student access to Pell Grants (income dependent) and subsidized student loans. Once those eligibilities and accreditations are accomplished, students will be notified and encouraged to utilize these important resources to finance their apprenticeships.