Amazon workers gain access to free college at these Central Ohio institutions

(COLUMBUS BUSINESS FIRST)–Amazon’s more than 9,000 Central Ohio employees now have access to free college tuition at local colleges, thanks to a new partnership the company announced on Thursday.

Amazon is partnering with Ohio Dominican University, Columbus State Community College, and eight other Ohio education providers as part of an expanded program to provide “fully funded college tuition” to its hourly employees.

Amazon says its up-skilling program, called Career Choice, is “designed to help frontline employees grow their skills for career success at Amazon or elsewhere.” It announced more than 140 participating providers on Thursday, including Columbus State and Ohio Dominican.

The program offers fully-funded tuition for employees after 90 days of employment.

Amazon employees can pursue bachelor’s degrees, earn industry certifications, build English proficiency skills or participate in high school completion programs. They have access to tuition support for as long as they remain employed at Amazon.

In addition to Columbus State and Ohio Dominican, the other new Ohio-based partners with Amazon announced are Bowling Green State University, Clark State College, Cleveland State University, Cuyahoga Community College, Owens Community College, the University of Akron, University of Toledo, and the program We Can Code IT.

Amazon employees also will have access to national online providers including Southern New Hampshire University, Colorado State University-Global, Western Governors University, and National University.

“When employers invest in up-skilling their people through training and education, it benefits those employees as well as Ohio’s economy by providing a workforce pipeline for the present and future,” Ohio Department of Higher Education Chancellor Randy Gardner said in a statement.

Amazon says the program is part of a $1.2 billion investment it is making to train more than 300,000 U.S. employees by 2025.

At Ohio Dominican University, Amazon employees are eligible to pursue any of its undergraduate certificates, associates degrees, or bachelor’s degrees.

President Connie Gallaher said in a statement that she “looks forward to welcoming Amazon employees to Ohio Dominican University, giving them access to the skills, knowledge, and experiences they need to enhance their credentials and advance their careers, and helping them connect their passion with their purpose.”

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