Accenture: Additional Money to Equip Young People with Career Readiness Skills

By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

As  part of Accenture’s global corporate citizenship initiative, Skills to Succeed, which will equip 250,000 people around the world by 2015 with the skills to get a job or build a business, the company has awarded KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program), a national network of charter schools, a grant of US$3.3 million to help young people in underserved communities transition from secondary education to higher education and employment.

The three-year grant will support the expansion of the Future Focus program, piloted with KIPP DC during the 2011-12 school year, to deliver skills training, mentoring and internships to nearly 7,000 students across the KIPP network. In addition, the grant will support KIPP Through College programs focused on helping KIPP students and alumni as they progress to and through college, including KIPP’s efforts to establish partnerships with colleges and universities across the United States.

The Future Focus program was established in Washington, D.C., as a joint project of KIPP DC and Accenture. This grant will expand the program in Washington, D.C., and bring it to four additional markets across the United States – Austin, Denver, Houston and the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, it will provide pro-bono work in each of the five markets to assist KIPP in developing and customizing skills training programs for each location. Accenture volunteers will help deliver skills training, including developing internship and job shadowing opportunities.