In its effort to help train the next generation of professional truck drivers, Yellow Corporation announced it graduated more than 1,000 CDL apprentices from its network of driving academies in 2022.

While expanding its driving academy program to 21 locations across 16 states, Yellow set the 1,000-graduate goal in early 2022. On Dec. 22, the graduation of six student drivers from Yellow’s South Bend, Indiana Driving Academy officially surpassed 1,000 graduates for the year.

“This is an enormous accomplishment for our company that involved hard work and tremendous dedication from our students, instructors and safety trainers across the country,” said Darren Hawkins, CEO of Yellow. “Operating our own academies not only ensures that we have the most qualified and skilled drivers on the road, it also helps address a shortage of professional drivers across the nation.”

To help increase the number of professional truck drivers, Yellow has partnered with the U.S. Department of Labor to sponsor paid apprenticeship programs, such as driving academies, where students are trained and mentored in the classroom and on the road by seasoned industry professionals and certified instructors. Yellow’s driving academies are tuition-free for all participants, and student apprentices are paid an hourly wage for their work throughout the program.

Yellow’s Driving Academies are in Albuquerque, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Ohio, Denver, Detroit, Fort Worth, Texas, Hagerstown, Maryland., Harrisburg/Carlisle Pennsylvania., Indianapolis, Kansas City, Maybrook, New York., Memphis, Nashville, Pico Rivera, California, Portland, Oregon., Salt Lake City, South Bend, Indiana, and Tracy, California.