Al Whitley, the founder of VDCI, begins his career as a U.S. Naval Supply Corps Officer despite his life-long ambition of becoming an architect.

Al is hired by his first architectural employer because of his strong computer skills acquired in the Navy. Al is one of the first ten architectural interns in San Diego to use AutoCAD. The fact that someone took a chance on him becomes one of the fundamental driving forces behind Al’s ultimate decision to create VDCI — to help other people pursue their dreams and provide opportunities for them to succeed.

Al Whitley becomes a licensed architect and earns his MBA. Two weeks after earning his MBA, Al begins to develop the AutoCAD curriculum for the University of California San Diego. Al realizes that he truly enjoys sharing his skills and the capabilities of CAD technology.

Al founds cadteacher as an extension of the client support services of his AIA (American Institute of Architects) award-winning, San Diego-based architectural practice, Whitley Consulting Group. Many of the students are architects, engineers, and contractors who want to know how to use AutoCAD, Revit, and other software programs in their offices most effectively and appropriately.

Cadteacher and UC San Diego integrate their educational programs. Cadteacher continues to develop as an independent educational institution.

Cadteacher is approved as an Autodesk Authorized Training Center and an AIA Continuing Education Provider.

Cadteacher is approved and licensed by the State of California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE).

Cadteacher launches its online curriculum with a powerful Learning Management System (LMS) and Student Information System (SIS). The online curriculum is approved by the State of California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE). All of cadteacher’s online Autodesk courses are approved by Autodesk for eLearning.

Cadteacher updates its name to reflect the Virtual Design and Construction technology skills taught — Virtual Design & Construction Institute (VDCI).

VDCI becomes nationally accredited. VDCI is North America’s first organically-grown, nationally accredited CAD & BIM institution. VDCI is also the first nationally-accredited Autodesk Training Center in North America, reporting to the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), the Council of Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), and the Accreditation Council for Continuing Education and Training (ACCET).

Al Whitley passes away peacefully and unexpectedly. In his memory, VDCI establishes the Al Whitley Memorial Scholarship Fund. Under the leadership of the new CEO, David Sellers, VDCI rededicates itself to the company mission: Providing Career Education for the Advancement and Employment of AEC Professionals.

VDCI continues to develop its curriculum to best serve its students’ career education goals. One of our strengths is the high degree of engagement between our students and their instructors, as well as within our student community. Our institution is the leading Autodesk Training Center in North America, and we continue to be closely aligned with UC San Diego.