One year into PepsiCo’s workforce readiness investment initiative focused on reaching Black and Hispanic youth on the South and West Sides, the company reports strong progress on all fronts and the need for additional investment in community-based organizations that directly impact workforce development. Launched in October 2021, Pathways to Readiness and Empowerment Program (PREP) is PepsiCo’s commitment to invest more than $5 million in local nonprofits with the aim to put nearly 3,000 young people from Chicago’s South and West Sides on the path to high-quality careers by 2026. In year one of PREP, the program provided more than 600 youth with career readiness resources and held nearly 20 career exposure events and a summer internship program across PepsiCo’s city operations. Additionally, PepsiCo Foundation awarded more than $350,000 in scholarships to Black and Hispanic neighbors through its partnership with City Colleges of Chicago, and several PREP program participants gained full-time employment with the company. This funding will be given to Imagine Englewood if, Girls in the Game, UCAN, Chicago Cares, Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP), Chicago Jesuit Academy, and Ladies of Virtue. For more information on PREP please visit www.pepsistrongertogether.com/communities/chicago.

Photo Caption: Youth from UCAN Chicago team up with PepsiCo for a day of job shadowing at PepsiCo’s 35th Street distribution center. Photo Courtesy of PEPSICO