Skilled trades abound in Home Depot program

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.

“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.”

To continue expanding no-cost training opportunities to youth, high school students, underserved communities, and separating U.S. military servicemembers, The Home Depot Foundation said it 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 two additional academy programs in Sacramento and Phoenix, and add $300,000 in trades school scholarships, among other enhancements, said the firm.  

“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.”

Since inception, said the company, 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. Here are some facts from the retailer:

• 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 underserved  communities, 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.

The Path to Pro trades training program, said the retailer, 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.