On July 25, 2019, Toyota North American CEO Jim Lentz visited the White House with six Toyota assembly plant team members to attend a ceremony celebrating the one-year anniversary of the “Pledge to America’s Workers” job training initiative.

Back in March, Toyota committed to creating 200,000 Pledge opportunities over the next five years through increased apprenticeships, work-based learning and on-the-job training. Since the announcement, Toyota has trained approximately 18,000 people.

Some team members accompanying Lentz were graduates of Toyota’s Advanced Manufacturing Technician program in partnership with 27 community colleges in 11 states. In the nine years since the program launched, 300 companies have adopted the model. Toyota has also significantly expanded its collaboration with such organizations as Project Lead The Way to create a pathway that stretches from pre-kindergarten all the way to a master’s degree level.