As summer draws to a close, I wanted to take a moment for us to reflect on some of the exciting advancements we have seen in the upskilling movement over the last few months and to let you know about another upskilling event coming up in a few days.

The biggest upskilling news this summer came from the retail sector, with Amazon, Target, and Walmart each making significant announcements.

Target has teamed with Guild Education to offer employer-funded college degree and certification programs for its 340,000 employees. The program is available to all part-time and full-time employees working in Target stores, distribution centers, and headquarters locations in the U.S. From their first day of work, workers will be eligible for debt-free assistance for select undergraduate degrees, certificates, and certifications from 250 business-aligned programs at more than 40 schools, colleges, and universities with no out-of-pocket costs. Read more.

Walmart (a supporter of UpSkill America), meanwhile, made its Live Better U (LBU) program free for its 1.5 million part-time and full-time Walmart and Sam’s Club employees. Walmart now pays 100% of college tuition and books for associates in the program, which used to cost participating associates $1 a day. Walmart report their investment in training and development programs will equal nearly $1 billion over the next five years. See below for more information on the results of the Live Better U program to date. Read more.

Read the full article about upskilling programs' by Jaime S. Fall and Upskill America at The Aspen Institute.