DALLAS, TX – BeardedEagle Consulting & Training Firm has forged a partnership with the Scrum Alliance, a non-profit Agile organization, to offer scholarships for Scrum Certifications to African Americans unemployed as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic.  The virtual courses offered are Certified Scrum Master (CSM), July 11-12, and Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), August 15-16.

In light of recent events, the owners of BeardedEagle were driven to move into action.  The minority business owners, Lizzy Morris and Devon Morris personally felt the effects of the Covid-19 quarantine and immediately put into practice Scrum Theory and began to inspect and adapt.  They embraced key values of The Agile Manifesto and uncovered a better way to serve the community; they decided to offer scholarship courses.   Their desire to help others facing uncertainty in their careers and struggling both economically and emotionally resulted in the offering of the CSM and CSPO courses on scholarship to individuals meeting the criteria.  The courses are valued at upwards of $1200.00 each.  Scholarships will be offered to African American professionals who are currently unemployed or furloughed with a background in project management, technology, product management, business development and entrepreneurship along with college students and high school graduates. 

The objective is to help people of color be better positioned to return and or enter the workforce with additional credentials. In the spirit of the Agile Manifesto, the certifications will enable those that take the courses to have valuable interactions with colleagues and empower organizations and businesses to innovate in these changing times. 

“It is our hope that we are a bridge that helps people of color adapt and embrace being Agile.   Agility will help navigate the new way organizations need to do business.  Change is inevitable.  It is the way people adapt to change that determines their success.  Our Scrum training will provide the tools needed for people to evolve as the world changes around them,” Lizzy Morris, co-founder of BeardedEagle.

As the only firm owned by African American professionals certified by the prestigious Scrum Alliance, Lizzy Morris and Devon Morris, have changed the face of Scrum and are determined to use relationships they’ve developed over the years in the Scrum community to champion Diversity & Inclusion, where it has previously been lacking.   Their partnership with the Scrum Alliance is a strong message to the community that intentional efforts are being made to ensure the organization is inclusive of people of all races. 

This is the beginning of what is anticipated to be an ongoing effort to address racial inequality within the Scrum community.  By addressing the problem, both BeardedEagle and the Scrum Alliance have committed themselves to working together to transform a system that has been broken and non-inclusive for too long.    

“Generations of African American professionals carry on their shoulders the weight of achievement not just for themselves but also for others. The concept of paying it forward has been the reality of successful black business owners and corporate professionals for many years.  We feel very deeply an obligation to support rising black professionals within the corporate space and those aspiring to be business professionals navigate their success,” said Lizzy Morris.  

People can visit, www.BeardedEagle.com , or call 1-888-245-5596 to get additional information about the scholarship courses.