Dow Expands Partnership with FIRST® to Promote STEM Education
March 20 2015 - 10:45AM
Business Wire
Partnership will promote employee engagement and hands-on
learning experiences for students
The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE:DOW) announced today a $1 million
commitment with FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science
and Technology) to promote STEM education. As part of Dow’s
STEMtheGAP™ initiative, today’s announcement is aligned to the
Company’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) mission
of building the workforce of tomorrow by supporting teachers,
motivating student achievement, developing careers, and
collaborating with communities to transform STEM education into a
driver for innovation, manufacturing, and economic prosperity.
The announcement was made at the opening ceremonies of the 2015
Great Lakes Bay Region FIRST Robotics Competition District Event by
Deborah Borg, president, Dow USA and Dean Kamen, founder, FIRST.
Alongside community leaders, educators and participating students,
Borg and Kamen solidified Dow’s partnership with FIRST and each
organization’s commitment to STEM education through strategic
collaborations and engagement.
“Dow has survived and thrived for more than a century because of
the strength of our innovation engine, built on a foundation of
STEM talent,” said Andrew N. Liveris, Dow’s chairman and chief
executive officer. “Investing in the education of our youth means
investing in our shared future and the future of our Company. There
is no better way to inspire children to pursue careers in STEM than
through the hands-on project based learning experiences that FIRST
provides.”
FIRST, a not-for-profit organization founded by inventor Dean
Kamen to inspire young people’s interest and participation in
science and technology, has designated Dow as a FIRST Strategic
Partner. The FIRST partnership will allow Dow to continue driving
student excitement around STEM in its local communities by engaging
its employees, with the ultimate goal of inspiring students to
choose a future career in a STEM field.
“Engaging students in STEM through hands-on experiences is a key
component to getting students excited about STEM careers,” said
Borg. “Dow understands the importance of STEM and collaborative
efforts such as this, which is why we are proud to partner with
FIRST.”
Through this new commitment, Dow will connect new and existing
FIRST teams with Dow mentors. As part of the Company’s STEM
strategy, it believes that engaging mentors will enable students to
learn from professionals who can inspire innovation and share their
insight about career opportunities in STEM. In addition, more than
75 new FIRST teams located in strategic Dow communities will be
created. The commitment between Dow and FIRST will also help send
teams to FIRST regional and district championships, provide support
for the annual FIRST championship event, and drive new team growth
in Europe and emerging geographies.
“Dow has generously provided support to FIRST since 2000, and
they have been instrumental in helping us grow FIRST programs in
their home state of Michigan,” said Kamen. “In addition to their
financial commitment, Dow employees have also been generous with
their time and knowledge by mentoring teams and volunteering at
events. We are pleased to recognize Dow as a FIRST Strategic
Partner, and are thankful for their continued, multidimensional
support.”
About Dow
Dow (NYSE: DOW) combines the power of science and technology to
passionately innovate what is essential to human progress. The
Company is driving innovations that extract value from the
intersection of chemical, physical and biological sciences to help
address many of the world's most challenging problems such as the
need for clean water, clean energy generation and conservation, and
increasing agricultural productivity. Dow's integrated,
market-driven, industry-leading portfolio of specialty chemical,
advanced materials, agrosciences and plastics businesses delivers a
broad range of technology-based products and solutions to customers
in approximately 180 countries and in high-growth sectors such as
packaging, electronics, water, coatings and agriculture. In 2014,
Dow had annual sales of more than $58 billion and employed
approximately 53,000 people worldwide. The Company's more than
6,000 products are manufactured at 201 sites in 35 countries across
the globe. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow
Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise
expressly noted. More information about Dow can be found at
www.dow.com.
More information about Dow’s commitment to promoting STEM
education can be found at
www.dow.com/company/citizenship/stem.htm.
About FIRST®
Accomplished inventor Dean Kamen founded FIRST® (For Inspiration
and Recognition of Science and Technology) in 1989 to inspire an
appreciation of science and technology in young people. Based in
Manchester, N.H., FIRST designs accessible, innovative programs to
build self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills while motivating
young people to pursue opportunities in science, technology, and
engineering. With support from over 200 of the Fortune 500
companies and more than $20 million in college scholarships, the
not-for-profit organization hosts the FIRST® Robotics Competition
(FRC® ) for students in Grades 9-12; FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC® )
for Grades 7-12; FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL®) for Grades 4-8; and
Junior FIRST® LEGO® League (Jr.FLL®) for Grades K-3.
Gracious Professionalism® is a way of doing things that encourages
high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and respects
individuals and the community.
For more information about FIRST programs and sponsorship
opportunities, please contact development@usfirst.org.
®TM Trademark of The Dow Chemical Company (“Dow”) or an
affiliated company of Dow
For further information contact:The Dow Chemical CompanySara
Steele, 202-429-3428smsteele@dow.comorFIRST®Cheryl Walsh,
603-206-2460cwalsh@usfirst.org
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