The Foundation Invests $3.7 Million to Continue Training Students to
Fill the Labor Gap
ATLANTA, Aug. 30,
2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Home Depot Foundation's Path
to Pro program and trades-focused partnerships have trained
more than 29,000 participants and introduced more than 126,000
people to the skilled trades, surpassing its commitment to train
20,000 people six years ahead of schedule.
To continue expanding no-cost training opportunities to youth,
high school students, underserved communities and separating U.S.
military servicemembers, The Home Depot Foundation is granting an
additional $3.7 million to its
industry-leading partners, Home Builders Institute (HBI),
Construction Ready and SkillPointe Foundation. The incremental
funding will support growth of youth programming with 100 Black Men
of America, develop an additional academy program in Houston, and add $300,000 in trades school scholarships, among
other enhancements.
"Through its extraordinary commitment, The Home Depot Foundation
is maximizing the impact of training and workforce development on
thousands of lives," said Ed Brady,
HBI president and CEO. "Together we are building the emerging
generation of skilled workers in the construction trades."
The Path to Pro trades training program launched in 2018 with a
$50 million commitment to train
20,000 skilled tradespeople, diversify the trades industry and
address the then 150,000 open construction roles across the
country. Since inception, Path to Pro has made impactful expansions
to increase equitable training and careers opportunities and
address the more than 400,000 open skilled trades jobs today,
according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- Each year, the Path to Pro military program provides nearly
1,200 exiting service members with industry recognized
pre-apprenticeship certification (PACT) through 10 U.S. military
bases
- The Path to Pro high school and youth program offers curriculum
and hands-on training to students in more than 270
schools across 33 states
- The Path to Pro academy program offers training and
certification for diverse adult populations, and academies in
Denver and Orlando have
successfully trained more than 600 students
- Through the Path to Pro scholarship program, more than 125
scholarships have been awarded to students pursuing a trade college
or postsecondary program, nationwide
"We're thrilled to have surpassed our initial goal early and
we're just getting started," said Shannon
Gerber executive director of The Home Depot Foundation.
"There's still a great need for skilled tradespeople, and we'll
continue to invest in the innovative programs that our
best-in-class partners have created."
About The Home Depot
Foundation
The Home Depot Foundation, the nonprofit arm
of The Home Depot (NYSE: HD), works to improve the
homes and lives of U.S. veterans, support communities impacted by
natural disasters and train skilled tradespeople to fill the labor
gap. Since 2011, the Foundation has invested more than $400 million in veteran causes and improved more
than 50,000 veteran homes and facilities. The Foundation has
pledged to invest half of a billion dollars in veteran causes by
2025 and $50 million in training the
next generation of skilled tradespeople through the Path to Pro
program.
To learn more about The Home Depot Foundation
visit HomeDepotFoundation.org and follow us
on Twitter @HomeDepotFound and
on Facebook and Instagram @HomeDepotFoundation.
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SOURCE The Home Depot Foundation