Last month’s launch of the Cisco Academy at the Bermuda College is being hailed as a “significant step forward in intellectual capital creation in Bermuda” by Information Services Minister, Michael Scott.Courses first started in late September with 37 students working toward their Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) designation.“This is a most inspiring and welcome development on Cisco Academy Bermuda classes. We have begun our very own home grown Bermuda instruction in Cisco,” Minister Scott said. “We underestimate the importance of intellectual capital creation at our peril.”Minister Scott believes that students who complete the course, under the guidance of the two Bermudian instructors at the Cisco Academy, will be better positioned to secure employment in the field of Information Technology.“Mr Arthur Eugene Phillips and Mr Lionel Jason Thomas, both trained as Cisco instructors, have embarked on a path that will equip Bermudians with the skills and knowledge necessary to compete not only on the local playing field but also globally and only the stars are the limit.”Orientation was successfully completed last week and Mr Phillips said the students appear eager to start and succeed.“We have a wide range of experience and educational backgrounds represented in the class and Jason and I look forward to guiding these new recruits successfully through the programme,” he said.“As mentioned in the class that evening — ‘the prize is there for the taking, it’s entirely up to each one of the students to do what is necessary to collect it’.”