NEW ORLEANS — As New Orleans prepares for the Bayou Classic and the holiday season, Diageo North America is spotlighting an initiative designed to open doors for more Louisianans in the hospitality industry. Diageo’s Learning Skills for Life (LSLF) program provides free job training and entrepreneurial education to people from underrepresented communities, an effort aimed at strengthening both workforce participation and economic mobility.
The Bayou Classic, a Thanksgiving weekend tradition celebrating the historic football rivalry between Grambling State and Southern University, brings thousands of visitors to the city each year and marks a busy period for local restaurants, hotels and event venues. Diageo says its presence at the event aligns with its broader mission to support equitable access to careers in hospitality.
“Learning Skills for Life is Diageo’s business and hospitality skills program for those seeking employment in the hospitality industry, but who may have faced barriers to employment in their lives,” said Dr. Danielle Robinson, Head of Community and Engagement Partnerships, Diageo North America, about the Learning Skills for Life program. “It provides equal access to business and hospitality skills and resources to increase participants’ employability, improve livelihoods and support a thriving hospitality sector that works for all.”
Free Hospitality Job Training
Launched in 2014, the LSLF program offers a four-week course in hospitality education and career readiness. The company underwrites all costs, including student scholarships, and partners with local educational, commercial and community organizations to deliver the curriculum. Participants receive training in both technical and soft skills related to the service industry, including mixology, customer relations, financial literacy and entrepreneurship.
Robinson said the program’s success depends on collaboration at every level. “In partnership with local educational, governmental and training organizations, Learning Skills for Life supports the growth of the individuals involved, of Diageo, and the hospitality industry overall,” she said. “Learning Skills for Life started in Latin America in 2008. Since then, our programs have reached more than 280,000 beneficiaries.”
She added that the company’s commitment to expansion has made the initiative a truly global one. “Learning Skills for Life has now grown globally to all regions of our business and is being executed in 36 countries and territories across the world,” said Robinson.
National Reach, Local Impact
Since its inception, Learning Skills for Life has expanded to seven locations across North America — including New Orleans, Baltimore, Chicago, Houston, Kentucky, Toronto, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Washington, D.C. Over the past two years, more than 5,000 individuals from underserved communities have completed the program.
Robinson said community-based delivery is key to the program’s impact. “All of our programs are facilitated and managed by local community nonprofits in the hospitality sector,” she said. “Our New Orleans program is partnered with the New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute (NOCHI), the only accredited culinary program in New Orleans. Many of our cocktails were localized with the input of Ti Martin of Commander’s Palace and also a world-renowned mixologist.”
She emphasized that job placement and soft-skill development remain central priorities. “Workforce placement is something we focus on in all of our programs, as well as the development of soft skills which prepare participants to work in a variety of roles within the hospitality industry,” said Robinson. “I would say the most successful are those programs in city landscapes or near sports and entertainment venues.”
Robinson said graduates have continued to advance in diverse hospitality careers, often returning to mentor others. “Many of our graduates have gone on to have very successful careers within the industry,” she said. “One of our early graduates has gone on to start her own mobile bartending and hospitality business, starred on Bar Rescue and is now part of our facilitator team for our program. Others are part of restaurant groups now operating in GM roles. We teach bartending and hospitality as well as leadership, resilience and empowerment.”
That focus on career advancement continues well beyond graduation. “All of our programs are focusing on job placement throughout the year,” Robinson said. “In New Orleans, which hosts festivals and entertainment throughout the year, there are many opportunities for students to work. The NOCHI team has established partnerships and collaborations with companies throughout the city to provide employment opportunities.”
Expanding Access Through Education
Diageo’s broader community investments extend to higher education and workforce development at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs). “Of our 29 HBCU and MSI endowment fund partners, four of our schools are in Louisiana,” Robinson said. “Our Learning Skills curriculum is being offered at three of the schools — Dillard, Southern and Grambling. Xavier is our fourth school in the region.”
She said Diageo’s ongoing partnership with NOCHI and Louisiana’s HBCUs demonstrates a long-term commitment to inclusion and opportunity. “Our goal is to make LS4L the go-to industry program in the region to help upweight the skills of bartending and hospitality employees throughout the city,” said Robinson. “Our multiyear partnership with NOCHI — we have been with them since they opened in 2020 — has allowed us to graduate over 250 students just in the past year. My hope for the future is that we continue to increase job placement throughout the region as well.”
