Reebok, JFF, Yellowbrick and APB Partner On Educational Program

Reebok, in partnership with online education platform Yellowbrick, national education and workforce nonprofit JFF, and sneaker and fashion retailer APB, announced the launch of online education and mentorship program aimed at preparing ages 17-to-20-year-olds to develop knowledge, skills and experience in the sneaker industry.

Based on a successful pilot in 2020 that served 15 students, the program has scaled to 50 candidates in Tallahassee, Charleston, and select cities.

The online program is based on the content of Yellowbrick’s Sneaker Essentials course, created with FIT & Complex. To this core curriculum, Reebok will add content and have company executives available for live mentorship sessions and portfolio reviews. Contributions to the curriculum will also be made through APBYOU, APB’s community and education platform. The Sneaker Essentials course finishes with a project where students create their own shoe design.

• Three stuudents will be selected to receive industry experience to produce and market their sneaker design and take part in the career landscape in a model that’s alignes with industries;
• the final design will be produce and sold through APB, the program’s exclusive retail partner; and
• Net proceeds will fund additional “cohorts” of the program, which the partners plan to expand into more cities in 2022.

This partnership comes at a time when, in the U.S., an estimated 2.7 million people lost their jobs in the cultural and creative industries between April and July 2020. Public and private partnerships that support students to explore and engage with opportunities in the creative sector show potential for impact.

According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the creative economy is one of the fastest-growing sectors worldwide. This partnership and the Sneaker Essentials course are meant to serve as a response with an innovative model.

Applications are open from March 18 to April; Students will be selected by April 6; and The Sneaker School program runs from April 17 to June 12.