Overview

Launched in 2026, NextUp901 is a citywide, multi-sector workforce development initiative in Memphis, Tennessee. The initiative connects young adults with education, training, work experience, and employment while helping employers find trained workers. Led by The Collective Blueprint, the initiative works to increase economic mobility and strengthen connections among young adults, workforce training providers, employers, community organizations, and government partners.

NextUp901 was created in response to an estimated 45,000 young adults in Memphis who are out of school and out of work. The initiative primarily serves young adults ages 18–30 and provides tuition-free education and training, paid learning opportunities, career coaching, employer connections, and other supports. Initial goals call for helping 1,000 young adults enter pathways to stable careers within the first year and 5,000 within five years.

Rather than operating as a single training program, NextUp901 functions as a citywide network and common entry point to multiple career and education pathways. Young adults use a common application and receive assistance identifying a pathway aligned with their circumstances and career interests. Employers use the network to connect with trained, career-ready candidates.

NextUp901 organizes opportunities through four main pathways:

• Foundation Pathway
  • Supports participants who need to complete a high school diploma or equivalent before advancing into additional education, training, or employment.
• Forward Pathway
  • Provides reentry and career support, including paid work experience and mentoring, for individuals affected by the justice system.
• Career Pathway
  • Provides occupational training in high-demand fields including health care, technology, and skilled trades.
  • Current examples: certified nursing assistant and emergency medical technician training, entry-level information technology training, and plumbing, electrical, and general labor apprenticeships.
• Explore Pathway
  • Provides paid career exploration and internships for younger participants who want experience with different occupations and industries.
    

Participants may receive stipends or wages while learning, along with career coaching, professional development, job-placement assistance, and supports such as counseling and transportation assistance. The broader initiative has also identified childcare among the wraparound supports available to participants.

NextUp901 is designed to address both sides of the local labor market. Training providers prepare participants for employment in fields where Memphis employers need workers, while employers participate by hiring graduates, offering internships and work experiences, and helping shape workforce pathways. The initiative describes itself as a network that grows talent, finds opportunities, and connects the two.

Background

NextUp901 designed this place-based workforce ecosystem approach in which education and training, employers, public agencies, community organizations, career navigation, work-based learning, and participant support services are coordinated around a common population and regional labor-market needs.

The initiative is designed to reconnect young adults who are disconnected from education and employment. Rather than treating training as the endpoint, the model links participants from career exploration and preparation through paid learning and into employment. Its emphasis on employer demand, apprenticeships, internships, wraparound supports, and multiple entry points makes it relevant to work on opportunity youth, skills-based hiring, workforce intermediaries, career pathways, and regional talent development.

Partners

• Memphis Medical District Collaborative
• Moore Tech
• Tech901
• Local education, workforce, government, community, and employer partners.

Funders

Public-private funding and partnerships coordinated by The Collective Blueprint. The Collective Blueprint identifies funders including the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis, FedEx, Jobs for the Future, JPMorgan Chase, the Kresge Foundation, the National Basketball Association Foundation, PayPal, Truist, and other philanthropic partners. NextUp901 reports that more than $1 million has been invested in the initiative and its related programming.

Resources

Business Wire. (2026, September 10). NextUp901 launches, offering career prep that pays young adults to train for in-demand jobs. Business Wire announcement

NextUp901. (2026). NextUp901. NextUp901 website

The Collective Blueprint. The Collective Blueprint. The Collective Blueprint website