Kleon Penn Passes CompTIA Tech+ on His First Try

Kleon Penn is part of our initial Beyond the Game cohort, the first group of students to go through the program. That matters. The first cohort had no older students to look to, no proof yet that the model worked. They were the proof. When Kleon joined, IT certifications were a goal on a whiteboard. Now they're on his resume: he passed the CompTIA Tech+ exam on his first attempt, with a score of 700.

If you've never sat for a cert exam, here's the context. Tech+ covers hardware, software, networking basics, security, and troubleshooting. It's the exam that tells employers you understand how technology works, not just how to use it. A lot of people take it two or three times. Kleon walked in once and walked out certified.

He earned that score the boring way, with study sessions and practice exams, going back over whatever he missed until it stuck. Credit also goes to his instructor, Kobie Joyner, who taught the cohort through the full Tech+ curriculum and pushed the class to treat practice exams like the real thing. Kobie has now guided two cohorts through this material, including the one our program lead Ramon Clemente came through, and results like Kleon's are what that teaching looks like on paper.

Tech+ is the first credential on a track that leads to Network+, Security+, and real jobs in IT. Ramon took the same first step on his own path. Kleon is right behind him, with a plan to keep stacking certifications.

Congratulations, Kleon. First try. We see you.

If his story sounds like something you want for yourself, the program is open.