Part of CUNY’s Career Success Initiative to help New Yorkers launch and
advance their careers in partnership with employers—
LaGuardia Community College is be part of a new partnership between the City University of New York (CUNY) and Amazon that allows the company’s hourly employees to attend college to further their career opportunities. Starting in January 2022, through Amazon’s Career Choice program, the company began providing an annual benefit covering tuition and select fees for all qualifying hourly employees enrolled in an associate degree program at LaGuardia Community College.
Career Choice is part of Amazon’s Upskilling 2025 [aboutamazon.com] pledge—a $1.2 billion commitment to upskill more than 300,000 Amazon employees by 2025.
“This important partnership is a powerful example of how the private sector can join forces with the City University of New York to advance workers’ education, promote economic mobility and help rebuild New York City’s post-pandemic economy all at the same time,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez. “We thank Amazon for its commitment to higher education for its employees and look forward to working with them while expanding CUNY’s role as one of the nation’s premiere engines of economic opportunity.”
“LaGuardia is ready to help hourly employees at Amazon earn college degrees,” said LaGuardia President Kenneth Adams. “Employees who enroll at LaGuardia will have many on-campus and online courses to choose from to accommodate their work schedules, and will have access to our robust advising teams, library services, tutoring centers, and support programs that help students get over the finish line. Our gratitude to Amazon for including LaGuardia in this promising partnership, which will benefit both Amazon employees and their families.”
Through this collaboration, New York City-based Amazon workers will have access to over 500 associate and bachelor’s CUNY degree programs—including over 50 at LaGuardia—in-demand fields such as STEM, healthcare, and green energy. This initial cohort of CUNY colleges represent a footprint in each borough to provide locations in physical proximity to Amazon operations. LaGuardia is near several Amazon facilities, e.g., an Amazon Fresh warehouse in Maspeth, Queens.
“At Amazon, 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,” said Carley Graham Garcia, Head of Community Affairs at Amazon in New York. “We’re thrilled today to be partnering with CUNY on our Career Choice program to give our employees access to pursue the education path that fits their passions. Whether employees are looking to finish their bachelor’s degree at CUNY or build on their foundational skills of English proficiency or GED preparation with our national partners, we’re prepared to meet our employees wherever they are on their educational journey.”
Starting with a focus on associate and bachelor’s degrees, the initiative is open Amazon hourly employees who enroll in any major at eight CUNY colleges in all five New York City boroughs. In addition to LaGuardia, the other CUNY participating colleges are: Bronx Community College, Borough of Manhattan Community College, City College of New York, College of Staten Island, CUNY School of Professional Studies, Kingsborough Community College, and Queens College.
CUNY’s partnership, the first for Amazon in New York State, is part of a national commitment by Amazon to provide educational and upskilling opportunities to more than 750,000 hourly employees at four national and more than 140 local universities and colleges.
Career training is just one of the industry-leading benefits that Amazon offers to its team. In addition, Amazon pays employees an average starting wage of $18 per hour, which is more than double the federal minimum wage, and provides comprehensive health benefits, paid time off, up to 20 weeks fully paid parental leave, and additional benefits for employees and their families.
Since launching in 2012, Career Choice has helped provide education for more than 50,000 employees. As of this announcement, Amazon’s Career Choice program works with more than 180 education providers across the U.S., which along with colleges and universities includes partners providing industry certifications, English language proficiency, high school completion programs, and college preparatory courses. Career Choice is one of nine free skills training and education programs that Amazon offers to its employees as part of its Upskilling 2025 pledge.
More information about CUNY Career Success Initiatives is available here.