DR. Ali Al-Ghafis, governor, General Organization for Technical Education and Vocational Training (GOTEVOT) and Fahd ibn Mohammed Al-Nowaiser, president, Element K. Middle East signed an agreement providing Element K. Middle East’s e-learning computer training solution to GOTEVOT’s employees and students. In the initial pilot program, over 20,000 GOTEVOT students and employees will be trained annually across several campuses. GOTEVOT is a unified Saudi organization combining all of the training centers and institutes of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs with the technical institutes of the Ministry of Education (gotevot.edu.sa/english). The computer training to be offered ranges from basic computer competency to IT professional courses such as Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) and Cisco. Two tracks will be available in Arabic for the basic computer courses, which are equivalent to the European Computer Drivers License (ECDL) and the Microsoft Office User Specialist (MOUS) certifications. Element K. Middle East is developing programs specifically for GOTEVOT that will utilize its own online training courses in conjunction with traditional instructor-led training, as well as GOTEVOT specific courses and GOTEVOT instructors. As an added benefit included with the MCSE and Cisco tracks, students will be training using vLabs. The vLab exercises allow students to access real hardware and software and utilize case-based exercises to apply conceptual knowledge to actual situations in a safe environment. Unlike simulated environments that usually provide a guided tour, vLab exercises place the students on real systems where their exploration can take them to different areas allowing them to learn from their mistakes. The vLab classroom product enables creation of a virtual classroom environment configured with all the necessary equipment for use in either a synchronous integrated distance learning event or a typical classroom event. Using vLab Classroom saves GOTEVOT between $50,000 and $150,000 on equipment for high-end IT courses, while providing students the best resources in training. Additionally, all training and results are conveniently recorded on the learning management system, and Element K. Middle East will be developing specialized assessment tests that meet the GOTEVOT specifications and requirements. The Element K agreement is part of a strategic plan on IT at GOTEVOT, which will be implemented over three years. The plan comprises a number of areas such as development of an applied system, construction of a LAN, provision of Internet services, hardware, and software of high international standards, and e-Learning. GOTEVOT has also signed three contracts for constructing an educational computer network in the technical colleges.