SAE International’s A World In Motion STEM Program Receives Grant From PPG Foundation

SAE International’s SAE Foundation announced today that it received a grant from the PPG Foundation to expand SAE International’s A World In Motion® (AWIM) program efforts. This expanded program will impact more than 3,000 middle school students in Southeast Michigan; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Ontario, Canada.

The project-based STEM programming afforded through the grant aligns with educational standards and explores STEM, teamwork, critical thinking and communication skills, both in the classroom and online.

“The PPG Foundation has been a strong supporter of STEM education and the AWIM program as we aim to spark knowledge and creativity among students as they embark on their educational journey,” said Lori Gatmaitan, executive director of the SAE Foundation. “Through their generous financial and volunteer support, we can collaborate to make an impact on students’ lives during a critical learning period to help develop a diverse, STEM-fluent talent pipeline.”

SAE International’s AWIM program provides more than 100,000 students annually with the skills needed to succeed in real-world work environments and helps connect their classroom learning with real-life application. During the program, students engage in the Engineering Design Experience, which includes setting goals, building knowledge, designing, building, testing and presenting their findings to an audience of peers and/or teachers. AWIM also supports professional development opportunities for teachers through training to effectively teach the curriculum, supplying all program materials and supplies to each participating classroom, and offering a STEM industry volunteer to support each teacher’s lessons.

“At PPG, we believe education is a powerful way to create positive impacts in our communities and enable pathways for local students to ignite their passions for learning, curiosity and STEM exploration,” said Malesia Dunn, executive director, PPG Foundation and corporate global social responsibility. “We invested in the AWIM program to support its work to advance STEM discovery, create a diverse, skilled STEM workforce, and help students thrive in science-related fields.”

The PPG Foundation’s grant provides each of the three regions with funding to train middle school teachers and implement the AWIM program:

• Southeast Michigan – Middle school classes in the Michigan cities of Fraser and Utica, near PPG’s Troy facility benefited from both teacher training and hands-on AWIM programming.
• Pittsburgh Metro Area – 50 teachers received training and are implementing AWIM in every sixth grade class throughout the city of Pittsburgh, where PPG’s headquarters is located.
• Canada – Schools in the Waterloo school district, near PPG’s Cambridge and Concord facilities received both teacher training and AWIM programming for 1,000 students.

SAE’s AWIM program provides educators with resources to help increase students’ understanding of and achievement in STEM subjects, including information technology and computer science. Over the past three decades, AWIM has reached six million students globally and has been supported by more than 30,000 industry professionals as volunteers.

To learn more about how PPG invests in the next generation of diverse and innovative STEM leaders, visit communities.ppg.com.

For more information on how to get involved with the SAE Foundation, visit: http://www.saefoundation.org.

To learn more about SAE’s AWIM program, visit: https://www.sae.org/learn/education/.

About SAE Foundation
The mission of the SAE Foundation is to increase student achievement and participation in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to build a STEM-fluent workforce. Funds raised by the SAE Foundation support SAE International’s award-winning A World In Motion® (AWIM) program, Collegiate Design Series™ (CDS), awards and scholarships. SAE’s STEM education programs enable students to develop the 21st century skills needed to succeed in real-world work environments and connect classroom learning with real-life application. SAE’s STEM programs have reached more than 6 million students worldwide and engaged more than 30,000 STEM industry professionals as volunteers. SAE International is a global association engaging nearly 200,000 engineers, technical experts and volunteers to advance mobility knowledge and solutions for the benefit of humanity. Get involved today http://www.saefoundation.org