Major Organizations Support Future Engineers with Grants to Gateway Academy

June 16, 2009 - PRLog -- DEARBORN, Mich., — Industries committed to the development of a skilled workforce and keeping America’s manufacturing sector strong, have given $318,000 in sponsorship grants to the SME Education Foundation. The funding will makes it possible for  secondary-school students who are aspiring to careers in technology and engineering to attend the Foundation’s Gateway Academies.  

Supporting this initiative are: American Electric Power (AEP) Foundation, Andersen Corporate Foundation, Capsugel®, a division of Pfizer, Emerson Charitable Trust, Ewing M. Kauffman Foundation, Ford Motor Company Fund, Goodrich Turbine Component Services, Haworth, Inc., H. B. Fuller Company Foundation, Honda of America Manufacturing, Inc., Kennametal Inc., PPG Industries, and Westinghouse Electric Corporation.

“Thanks to these generous organizations, we are able to continue helping steer young people toward careers in engineering and technology,” said Bart Aslin, executive director of the SME Education Foundation. “Their ongoing commitment to science, technology, engineering and math education is essential as we equip the future workforce with the skills necessary for success.”

Gateway Academies are summer camps where talented secondary school students explore careers in science, technology, engineering and math. The SME Education Foundation organizes over 220 Gateway Academies in 34 states, in concert with Project Lead the Way® (PLTW), a non-profit that creates innovative pre-engineering curriculum. The SME Education Foundation has invested $1 million of its own funds toward the Foundation’s 2009 summer youth programs.

At each Gateway Academy, PLTW-certified instructors lead students in projects and activities related to engineering disciplines. The SME Education Foundation and PLTW are dedicated to filling the projected shortfall in American engineers, so a major goal of Gateway Academies is to motivate students to participate in Gateway to Technology courses designed by PLTW during the school year, and encourage enrollment in college-preparatory science and math courses.

# # #

About the Society of Manufacturing Engineers Education Foundation:
The SME Education Foundation is committed to inspiring, supporting and preparing the next generation of manufacturing engineers and technologists in the advancement of manufacturing education. Created by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers in 1979, the SME Education Foundation has provided more than $29 million since 1980 in grants, scholarships and awards through its partnerships with corporations, organizations, foundations and individual donors. Visit the SME Education Foundation at www.smeef.org and its award-winning Web site, Manufacturing is Cool!