Lake Worth, Fla. – Palm Beach State College has been selected as an education partner for Amazon’s Career Choice program, providing the global company’s hourly employees with access to its more than 130 degree and certificate programs. In the U.S., Amazon is investing $1.2 billion to upskill more than 300,000 employees by 2025 to help move them into higher-paying, in-demand jobs.

“This is an incredible opportunity for Palm Beach State College to support the education and training needs of Amazon’s workforce locally and around the nation,’’ said Ava L. Parker, J.D., PBSC president. “Our academic programs include areas such as cybersecurity, business and supply chain management that will benefit Amazon employees in their varying roles.”

“We’re looking forward to Palm Beach State College coming on board as an education partner for Career Choice, adding to the hundreds of best-in-class offerings available to our employees,” said Tammy Thieman, global program lead of Amazon’s Career Choice program.

PBSC, which will celebrate its 90th anniversary in 2023, is a leading institution of higher education in Palm Beach County offering bachelor’s and associate degrees and professional certificates at five convenient campus locations throughout Palm Beach County and through PBSC Online.

“With constant changes in our technology-driven society and in how people receive goods and services, it’s important to have a well-trained workforce ready to meet those needs. We’re happy to play a role in that, and we thank Amazon for this partnership,” Parker said.

PBSC has been named five times among the top 150 community colleges in the nation eligible to compete for the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. It also has been chosen a “Top 10” Military Friendly® School for the fourth consecutive year by VIQTORY, a highly regarded military publisher; is ranked among the Top Online Colleges by Newsweek and Statista; and is recognized as one of the Top 100 Colleges for Hispanic Students by Hispanic Outlook magazine.

Amazon’s Career Choice program is an education benefit that empowers employees to learn new skills for career success at Amazon or elsewhere. The program meets individual learners where they are on their education journey through a variety of education and upskilling opportunities including pre-paid college tuition, industry certifications designed to lead to in-demand jobs, and foundational skills such as English language proficiency, high school diplomas, and GEDs. In the U.S., the company is investing $1.2 billion to upskill more than 300,000 employees by 2025 to help move them into higher-paying, in-demand jobs.

Amazon’s Career Choice program has a rigorous selection process for thirdparty partner educators, choosing partners that are focused on helping employees through their education programs, assisting them with job placements, and overall offering education that leads to career success.

“We’re committed to empowering our employees by providing them access to the education and training they need to grow their careers, whether that’s with us or elsewhere,’’ Thieman added. “We have intentionally created a partner network of third-party educators and employers committed to providing excellent education, job placement resources, and continuous improvements to the experience. Today, over 90,000 Amazon employees around the world have participated in Career Choice and we’ve seen first-hand how it can transform their lives.” For more information on Amazon’s Career Choice, visit: www.aboutamazon.com/news/workplace/career- choice.

For more information on Palm Beach State College, visit www.palmbeachstate.edu.