Hormel Foods announced today that it is making a commitment to provide the opportunity of a college education to the dependent children of its inspired team members. The program comes at a time when paying for college has become a hardship for many people, and as community colleges, the foundation of so many communities in the United States, struggle with enrollment.

The Inspired Pathways program is open to all currently employed Hormel Foods team members in the United States and will begin later this year with the first class beginning college in the 2021-2022 academic year. The company will be partnering with community colleges in cities where it has operations. Additionally, the company will be creating community mentorship committees to provide resources to the students, including assistance with applications. The program will also work with students on internships and other career development opportunities.

The program follows the highly successful Hormel Foundation Austin Assurance Scholarship which benefits all high school students who live in Austin, Minnesota.

While the company does have a four-year college scholarship program through the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, the Inspired Pathways program is designed to be inclusive of all dependent children of Hormel Foods team members and is not based on achievement of a certain test score or GPA. The only academic requirements are that the student graduates from high school and meets the community college’s entry requirements. Additionally, the company offers tuition reimbursement for current team members who go back to school while working at Hormel Foods.