HERMITAGE, Pa. - The Hermitage Walmart Super Center is showing off their new training academy where employees gain skills and work towards promotions.

Training, teaching, and development are helping bring more money into the economy with Walmart associates gaining new skills through their new academy training program.

Last quarter alone 7,700 associates in the Youngstown market and Hermitage have earned more than $1,300,000 in bonuses and more than 10,000 associates in Ohio and Pennsylvania earned promotions. Company-wide this is Walmart's 90th training academy.

“This has never been done before and this is something where we really truly believe in our associates and it gives us the ability to give them that time and attention,” said Katrina Marra, the training academy manager.

By the end of 2017, Walmart plans to open a total of 200 training academies investing $2.7 billion nationwide into their associates.

Hands on skills, communication practices, and basic retail fundamentals are just some of the things associate's gain.

“We learn a lot of things when we are in the academy I know I was able to take out from the academy some really great leadership and some core business models that Walmart stands for,” said Matthew Baker, a training academy graduate.

On Thursday, 53 associates graduated from The Hermitage Training Academy.