JPMorgan Chase Supports Per Scholas and South Bronx Youth for High-Demand Jobs as Part of a $6m New Skills for Youth Initiative

On May 5, 2017 JPMorgan Chase & Co. announced a renewed commitment to open doors to successful careers for South Bronx youth as part of the New Skills for Youth Initiative. The initiative aims to develop new networks and connectivity between technical education schools and career programs to employer networks all over New York City.

The investment supports a variety of local organizations who are embedded in the South Bronx community, including Per Scholas. The objective is to “support intermediaries in growing industries vital to the NYC economy to increase employer engagement and commitments to career education, support school and system level capacity and pathway development in three sectors: healthcare; information technology; and transportation, distribution and logistics.” Other recipients include the New Visions for Public Schools, New York Alliance for Careers in Healthcare (NYACH) and The Consortium for Worker Education.

Per Scholas has invested heavily in an employer-facing model by partnering with industry leaders to develop relevant and hands-on classroom curricula so graduates are more than prepared for the jobs currently available in the market. These partnerships extend well beyond the classroom, a variety of technology and business leaders sit on Per Scholas’ National and local Advisory Boards that has developed and in-depth understanding of business needs.

In addition to employer relationships, for over twenty years Per Scholas has remained embedded in the South Bronx community. Through partnerships with local school systems, and community based organizations, Per Scholas is capable of interfacing effectively between community needs and business demand. Per Scholas President and CEO, Plinio Ayala commented “We do this work to make sure the host of talented youth in the South Bronx aren’t overlooked as a competitive workforce resource. With support and investment from partners like JPMorgan Chase we are working to build equitable, accessible career pathways in New York’s thriving tech scene.”

JPMorgan’s $6 million investment will focus on three key innovations outlined by the financial institutions press release marking the announcement. These three areas include:

• Support intermediaries in growing industries vital to the NYC economy to increase employer engagement and commitments to career education, support school and system level capacity and pathway development in three sectors: healthcare; information technology; and transportation, distribution and logistics.

• Build a new apprenticeship model that will lead to more registered apprenticeship opportunities in the South Bronx with a “leave behind” sustainable apprenticeship pathway in transportation distribution and logistics.

• Support the development of a high quality data system to measure and track the expansion of services and opportunities for work based learning, internships and community based efforts that match young people to career pathways.

The investment comes at a time when well-paid, quality employment is available all over New York City, with increasing recognition among employers that employees do not need a bachelor’s degree to be successful in the work. To read more about the announcement please visit the NY1 story and interview with JPMorgan’s CEO, Jamie Dimon by clicking here.