Boeing Announces $6 Million in Grants to Support Education in Washington

Includes $1 million for Washington universities to enhance STEM training, opportunities for local students

Published: September 2016

RENTON, Washington. Boeing announced on September 21 it is awarding $6 million in grants to more than 50 nonprofit organizations and education institutions across Washington.

The grants are geared toward programmes that enhance STEM, workforce training, and educational and career pathway opportunities for students – particularly for underserved students who have not historically pursued these career paths. Included in these grants is $1 million to further support students seeking a STEM education and enhanced learning opportunities at local universities.

Boeing expects a substantial portion of its Washington workforce to retire during the next several years and is working to ensure that students in the state have the education and skills to fill these openings and move with the company into its second century. These grants support Boeing’s long-standing commitment to Washington and will prepare the workforce for these opportunities in the near future.

“Boeing will be a significant jobs provider in Washington for decades to come. Our hope and goal is that those future jobs will continue to be filled by kids who grow up right here in the state,” said Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO Ray Conner. “We are working hard today to give Washington students opportunities for employment within aerospace, manufacturing and other STEM-related fields when they graduate. Despite the always dynamic aerospace industry, Boeing remains consistent in its investment in our future here in Washington.”

The university grants awarded by Boeing are:

• University of Washington (UW): $500,000 to help under-represented high school students attend and succeed at UW, including support for the Dream Project, which trains students to mentor first-generation and low-income high school students.

• Washington State University (WSU): $250,000 to support new coursework and equip new labs at WSU’s North Puget Sound at Everett campus, currently scheduled to open in 2017. The campus’ new Fabrication Lab will be named the Boeing Innovation Studio.

• Seattle University: $250,000 for the College of Science and Engineering to improve retention rates of non-traditional students in undergraduate engineering and computer science programs.

The additional $5 million in grants, ranging from $25,000 to $550,000, are designed to provide a continuum of learning and education resources for Washington’s younger residents.

Some of the largest grants will support: Thrive Washington and its focus upon early learning; Washington STEM and its K-12 learning initiatives; and SkillUp Washington and its manufacturing pathways partnership with community and technical colleges.