More than $200,000 were awarded to the Fort Wayne Boys and Girls Club earlier this week to fund science, technology, engineering and math education initiatives, also known as STEM.
The funding includes Project Blueprint, the newly announced collaboration between the Boys and Girls Club and Northeast Indiana Building Trades. Money will also cover the purchase of learning tools and classroom materials at the Club's newly-reconstructed building on Fairfield Avenue.
Fort Wayne Community School's Career Academy and Ivy Tech will also work with the organization to expose members to STEM careers and fields, as well as offer hands-on experience.
“The partnership between Boys and Girls Club, Northeast Indiana Building Trades and Ivy Tech Fort Wayne is important to the construction industry. This partnership will help create awareness of opportunities within the trades and “hands on experiences” that they can build on as they grow older and embark upon their careers,” said Jerillee Mosier, Chancellor Ivy Tech Fort Wayne.
Michael Kinder and Sons and the Northeast Indiana Building Trades will launch a curriculum after Labor Day that will offer participants a behind the scenes look at building construction.
Club officials estimate that about 150 kids be touched by the program during the upcoming school year, according to a press release from the Boys and Girls Club.
Financial contributors to the program include:
- $180,000 from Indiana Michigan Power/AEP Foundation for classroom furnishings and learning tools.
- $30,000 from NIPSCO for welding equipment, tools and classroom materials
- $10,000 from General Motors Fort Wayne Assembly Plant under the club’s SPARK (Special Pathways for At-Risk Kids) umbrella, which includes Project Blueprint.
Boys and Girls Club President Joe Jordan said in a press release the new program will help the club's youth understand the value and opportunities available in STEM and the building trades.
