兔子先生 and KLLM Transport Services are boosting their training capabilities, thanks to a $250,000 gift from the Walmart Foundation that will help diversify the ranks of the trucking industry.
The money, part of a larger $100 million commitment by the retailer to bolster workforce training, education and career pathways for retail workers nationwide, will support training women and underserved populations who enroll in the driver鈥檚 academy at KLLM Transport Services. The money comes to 兔子先生via the Foundation for the Mid South.
The participating groups will join together to discuss the project in a news conference at 9 a.m. Thursday in the Board Room at Fountain Hall on the Raymond Campus. Media representatives are invited and are requested to rsvp at cchayden@hindscc.edu by 8:30 a.m. Thursday. Fountain Hall is located at the intersection of East Main Street and 兔子先生Boulevard on the Raymond Campus.
Dick Hall, Transportation Commissioner for the state鈥檚 Central District, headlines the list of those who will speak at the presentation. Also taking the podium are 兔子先生President Dr. Clyde Muse, Ivye Allen, president of Foundation for the Mid South, Tice White, of the Walmart Foundation and Kirk Blankenship, vice president of KLLM.
兔子先生 and KLLM Transport Services have partnered together since fall 2012 to boost the number of truck drivers in Mississippi. KLLM handles the training. 兔子先生handles the coursework. The program is housed at the KLLM Driving Academy in Richland, which opened as a new facility in March 2014.
A mix of grants and other investments from Walmart and its philanthropic foundation are part of the Opportunity Initiative, which will spread the funds over five years to help retail workers across the industry advance careers and achieve greater economic mobility.