T.D. Jakes Foundation receives $250,000 grant from Truist to support the PATHWAY Program for Economic Mobility

Grant to help drive critical programming to further connect diverse job seekers and businesses

DALLAS, Oct. 12, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- T.D. Jakes Foundation today announced it received a $250,000 grant from Truist Financial Corporation through its Truist Charitable Fund, a donor-advised fund at The Winston-Salem Foundation. The grant will support T.D. Jakes Foundation's PATHWAY program, which seeks to support individuals in their journey toward family-sustaining careers, and further support the program's economic mobility and empowering of diverse job seekers.

"We often see people from underrepresented communities do not know where to begin in a job search or do not know the resources that might be available in a career transition," said Kelley Cornish, CEO of T.D. Jakes Foundation. "Grants like this allow us to facilitate job training and improve our PATHWAY program model to reach more job seekers. We are grateful to Truist for the contribution and are excited to see how it propels our PATHWAY program forward to further helping job seekers reach their full career potential."

PATHWAY's focus is on skill building, including job skills, training, and support to create competencies that close the opportunity gap and create potential for future generations. Truist's support will help this service model implement an approach that takes candidates from awareness to training to self-sufficiency. Support of this program allows T.D. Jakes Foundation to connect vetted and qualified candidates to businesses seeking diverse talent.

"Truist is proud to invest in the PATHWAY program to support avenues for career growth and economic mobility across the communities we serve," said DeVon Lang, North Texas Regional President at Truist. "By partnering with T.D. Jakes Foundation, we can more effectively work together in our shared efforts to create opportunities for prosperity and financial independence. We look forward to seeing how PATHWAY equips the next generation of leaders with the skills they need to excel in their careers."

Through programs like PATHWAY, T.D. Jakes Foundation is elevating and integrating services, including job skills, training, and support to transform lives and enrich communities. With PATHWAY, those who need employment and support do not have to navigate a maze of programs and bureaucracies independently. PATHWAY provides a helping hand, guiding those in need through intervention services, training, educational and aftercare programs – and ultimately connecting them to living-wage employment, part of T.D. Jakes Foundation's end-to-end accountability system.

Additionally, Truist was a sponsor of T.D. Jakes Foundation's "You're Hired!" event, hosted on Saturday, October 7 at the P.L.A.C.E at The Potter's House, located at 6777 W Kiest Blvd, Dallas, TX 75236. The event, a hiring mixer, presented in partnership with Workforce Dallas, the Dallas Mavericks, and State Farm, was open to PATHWAY participants and was designed to connect job seekers with employment opportunities.

About T.D. Jakes Foundation
T.D. Jakes Foundation is building bridges by unlocking the power of global competition through workforce training that prepares workers to compete in today's economy through STEM/STEAM education, financial literacy and inclusion, and a laser focus to close the racial wealth gap and support minority women in corporate leadership. For more than 40 years, T.D. Jakes has connected diverse communities across socio-economic divides. Through the work of T.D. Jakes Foundation, Chairman Jakes is harnessing decades of resources and connections to prepare people for success in the 21st-century workforce, lift underserved populations and connect corporations to new, highly skilled pools of talent amid increasing global competition. For additional information visit: https://tdjfoundation.org/ 

About Truist Charitable Fund 
The Truist Charitable Fund ("TCF") is committed to Truist Financial Corporation's (NYSE: TFC) purpose to inspire and build better lives. TCF was established as a donor-advised fund and is administered by the Winston-Salem Foundation. TCF invests in local community organizations, focusing on grants that support initiatives and programs in the areas of educational equity, leadership development, career pathways, small business, and community services. To learn more about Truist's purpose, visit https://www.truist.com/who-we-are/about-truist.

About Truist
Truist Financial Corporation is a purpose-driven financial services company committed to inspiring and building better lives and communities. Truist has leading market share in many high-growth markets in the country and offers a wide range of products and services through our retail and small business banking, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, insurance, wealth management, and specialized lending businesses. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Truist is a top 10 U.S. commercial bank with total assets of $555 billion as of June 30, 2023. Truist Bank, Member FDIC. Learn more at Truist.com

SOURCE T.D. Jakes Foundation