Tyson Foods’ Upward Academy celebrates five years

SPRINGDALE, Ark. – Tyson Foods Inc. is celebrating the five-year anniversary of its on-site education program, Upward Academy. The innovative program provides educational opportunities to frontline team members at no cost to help build a strong work force and strong communities.

Since the launch of the first program pilot at the Randall Road facility in Springdale, Ark., in February 2016, Upward Academy has transformed into a nationally scaled program. With the help of partners and students, Upward Academy has extended its presence to serve hundreds of team members in 60 communities across the country.

“Upward Academy was established to provide educational opportunities for team members to transform their lives and their communities,” Donna Davis, who leads the Upward Academy program at Tyson Foods, said in a news release. “The commitment by our leadership to expand the program across our company is another example of how we invest in our team members, our most valuable asset.”

Tyson Foods plants are predominantly located in rural areas with limited labor pools, which means it relies on developing and promoting talent internally. Many of the frontline team members are new to the U.S. and come from dozens of different countries. In fact, as many as 50 different countries may be represented within a single plant.

Tyson foods has a facility in Camilla, 25 miles east of Albany.

In partnership with local adult education providers, Upward Academy helps team members develop important life skills, offering free and accessible classes in English as a Second Language, high school equivalency, U.S. citizenship, financial literacy and digital literacy. To make it as convenient as possible for team members to attend, classes are offered in Tyson Foods plants immediately before and after shifts.

Mohammad Mukhtar, community liaison and citizenship instructor at the company’s Center, Texas, plant, describes the program participants and benefits using these words: independence, excelling, life goals, self-sufficiency, enthusiasm, attitude and liberation.

“Upward Academy brought such a positive impact to my plant,” Mukhtar said. “The work place is not just a place where your life is stuck, but you have opportunities for education and for a better life. We’re doing everything to make sure team members don’t miss out on this.”

The program successfully adapted to challenges in 2020 by providing instruction in alternative settings. Instructors sent printed materials home, helped students access curriculum on their phone, and provided 58 digital learning labs with Microsoft SurfaceGo tablets so students could continue learning remotely through a pilot tablet-loan program.

Upward Academy continues to experience success in its efforts. Recently, the complementary career development program, Upward Pathways, launched and provides frontline team members job skills training and work force certifications in the plant at no cost.

“We’re excited to launch Upward Pathways as the next step from Upward Academy, which has seen tremendous success in providing resources to team members to help them take control of their own development and professional growth,” John R. Tyson, chief sustainability officer of Tyson Foods, said.

The addition of Upward Pathways gives all team members access to an equitable career pathway, strengthening an internal pipeline of skilled team members in an increasingly complex production environment, company officials said.

Special Photo: Tyson Foods