A Winning Scorecard Thanks to Million Dollar Supporters – Celebrating 30 Years

The SME Education Foundation acknowledges private donors and major industry for extraordinary support of its STEM manufacturing programs.
 
DEARBORN, Mich., March 29, 2010 — Engineers think in absolute and logical terms and when they collaborate, organizations and the communities around them prosper. The SME Education Foundation, in celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, gratefully acknowledges support received from major industry and private donors, each of whom have exceeded more than a million dollars with in-kind gifts, donations or endowment. 

The Earl & Myrtle Walker Founder’s Society established by the SME Education Foundation includes:  

• Caterpillar Foundation – since 1980, donated over $1 million.
• Ford Motor Company Fund – since 1981, donated over $1 million.
• Toyota Motor Corporation ─ since 1990, created $1 million Toyota Motor Corporation Endowment Fund, thanks to Dr. Shoichiro Toyoda, president of the Toyota Motor Corporation, at the direction of SME Foundation president, Reginald W. Barrett, CMfgE, who was able to leverage the resources of the Foundation for its creation and administration.
• E. Wayne & Beulah S. Kay – in 1994, from their estate, provided a gift of $1.6 million.
• Siemens PLM Software, Inc. ─ in 2008- 2009, provided in-kind gifts of nearly $35 million.
• Allen Weber – since 1998, donated over $1 million.
• 3M – in 2007, 2008 and 2009, provided in-kind gifts of nearly $1 million.

According to Bart Aslin, director, SME Education Foundation, “Thanks to the collaborative effort and generous funding of private donors, business and industry, we have been able to measurably affect the development of STEM education and have a laser focus on educating the public about the importance of manufacturing and the high-paying jobs it offers.”   
The SME Education Foundation programs include awards, grants, scholarships and youth programs. By focusing on K-12 STEM education, youth programs include an award-winning website for young people, www.ManufacturingisCool.com , the National Robotics Challenge,   Gateway Camps, and the Summer Manufacturing Experience Institute (sMe Institute). This year, Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) courses are being introduced at 400 Project Lead The Way high schools and the Gateway Academy expanded to an additional 300 middle schools across the U.S.                      

While states struggle to maintain quality education, the SME Education Foundation is especially grateful to these companies and corporations, foundations and individual donors for their focus. They have never ceased to think about the future of manufacturing in this country and the importance of K-12 students having access to a quality STEM education. Their financial support has allowed the SME Education Foundation to fund more than $29 million since 1980.

For information on providing tax-deductible financial support to academic and industry programs of the SME Education Foundation, or to their sponsored, 30th Anniversary which will celebrate the contributions of its supporters, please visit www.smeef.org.

About the SME 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 award-winning Web site, www.ManufacturingisCool.com

Media Contact: Bart A. Aslin, Foundation Director, SME Education Foundation, 313 425-3302
baslin@sme.org