Innovative
partnership will prepare students on a management track in high-demand fields
City Colleges of Chicago (City Colleges) and
PepsiCo yesterday announced a partnership to support student success by
providing up to 40 job offers annually in the high-demand fields of
transportation, distribution and manufacturing. Students will take on roles in
career paths that lead to management, including as merchandisers, warehouse
personnel, commercial truck drivers or machine maintenance technicians and
mechanics.
PepsiCo, one of the largest food and beverage companies in
the U.S. with a product portfolio that includes Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade,
Frito-Lay, and Pepsi-Cola, will address local workforce needs by connecting
City Colleges’ students with training and employment opportunities.
“The partnership with PepsiCo and City Colleges helps
Chicago’s hard working students develop the skillsets needed to thrive and
excel in the 21st century,” said Mayor Emanuel. “The future is bright for those
entering the transportation, distribution, logistics and manufacturing fields,
and City Colleges students will be prepared for the thousands of jobs coming to
the region in the coming years.”
PepsiCo and its sister brands are committed to bringing on
up to 40 students total from Daley College and Olive-Harvey each year. New
hires will start at more than $14 an hour, and increase depending on the
position.
PepsiCo also committed to investing in tuition
reimbursement, transportation, and other school-related costs for City Colleges
students. Additionally, the industry leader will host regular hiring
events that target City Colleges students and surrounding communities, as well
as name Olive-Harvey as a preferred Forklift training site for existing and
future PepsiCo employees.
In addition to completing a degree or certificate at
Olive-Harvey College or Daley College, students will participate in
PepsiCo-specific training [and workplace readiness training] to help prepare
them for the company screening process. The New York-based company has
for a long time had a major local presence, including manufacturing on 51st
St. in Bridgeview; a large distribution center on 35th St.; and
management offices in the West Loop and Schaumburg.
“With business operations continuing to evolve, we need to
ensure workers of tomorrow have the skill sets that will be required to stay
ahead of new trends,” said Al Carey, CEO, PepsiCo North America. “Innovative
public-private partnerships like the one we’ve created with City Colleges of
Chicago enable us to provide opportunities to the community while we recruit,
train, and develop talent to fill high-tech roles now and well into the future
and give local students a career path to ensure their future success.”
“The partnership is an example of how City Colleges works
with leading employers to prepare our students for careers in high-demand
fields,” said City Colleges Chancellor Juan Salgado. “We appreciate
PepsiCo recognizing the pipeline of talent City Colleges offers and its effort
to work with us to ensure these students launch careers that offer a pathway to
upward mobility.”
“I applaud PepsiCo for their commitment to hiring from
communities devastated by unemployment. The best and most effective
anti-violence program is a jobs program! The best way to decrease violence is
to increase economic opportunity. This is a great day for communities
like Austin, and West Garfield Park,” stated Cook County Commissioner Richard R.
Boykin (D-1).
Both Olive-Harvey College and Daley College have a proven
track record in working with employers to ensure the curriculum and facilities
meet the demands of employers in high demand fields.
“Daley students will be working as technicians and mechanics
at PepsiCo’s warehouses—repairing and installing equipment and helping ensure
manufacturing operations run smoothly—and that’s pretty exciting,” added Daley
College Interim President Dr. Eduardo Garza. “With a major organization
like PepsiCo deciding to recruit our students and development of the new
Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing Center, there are great things happening
on campus.”
“We are excited to formalize our partnership with PepsiCo, a
long-standing supporter of our efforts,” noted Olive-Harvey Interim President
Felicia Davis. “The students and community on the far South Side are seeking
opportunities like this to start work immediately in roles that lead to
family-sustaining careers.”
Mayor Emanuel and City Colleges broke ground last year on a
$45 million Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing Center at Daley College,
marking the start of construction of the 57,000-square foot project that will
help prepare Chicagoans for the more than 20,000 jobs coming to the region in the
engineering and advanced manufacturing fields over the next decade. A few
months later, in December, Mayor Emanuel announced that construction would
resume on the 103,000-square-foot Transportation, Distribution and Logistics
Center at Olive-Harvey. The facility will prepare students for
transportation-related jobs and include automotive and diesel engine
laboratories, an engine dynamometer, classrooms, simulated driving areas, a
testing center and vehicle bays. It also would be a central location to provide
office supplies to City Colleges' campuses and other buildings.
PepsiCo already hired 10 South Side community members,
including former City Colleges students, during a hiring event at Olive-Harvey
College this past November.
For more information on City Colleges of Chicago and to
apply, visit www.ccc.edu or call 773/C-O-L-L-E-G-E. For PepsiCo job
opportunities, go to PepsiCo
Careers.