BATON ROUGE, La., Feb. 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Providing
teachers with world-class training in southern Louisiana is the newest way that Dow and CH2M
are helping local students become the foundation of the future
workforce.
Committed supporters of STEM (science, technology, engineering,
and math) education, Dow and CH2M have partnered with the
Smithsonian Science Education Center (SSEC) to bring the
Smithsonian STEM Education Forum to Baton
Rouge. The Forum will provide 50 local teachers with a day
of hands-on training that will empower them to incorporate
engineering into their classrooms, benefitting hundreds of local
students for years to come. Set for Saturday, Feb. 18, the Forum will feature experts
from SSEC, a unit of the Smithsonian Institution, the world's
largest museum, education, and research complex, based in
Washington, D.C., two professors
from Louisiana Tech University, along
with Dow and CH2M employee volunteers.
"We are excited to expand our partnership with CH2M and the
Smithsonian Science Education Center to provide this incredible
opportunity here in Baton Rouge as
we realize teachers have such an important role in fostering
student achievement," said Abby
Cook, Louisiana Public Affairs manager for Dow. "Our local
students will be our workforce of tomorrow and drive our region's
prosperity, and we are glad to partner to bring them the best
training possible."
"The CH2M Foundation is fortunate to partner with Dow and the
Smithsonian Science Education Center, both of whom share our belief
that inspiring the next generation of STEM leaders in Louisiana starts with our teachers," said
Ellen Sandberg, executive director
of the CH2M Foundation. "This unique learning opportunity
demonstrates to our educators that they are highly valued and
critical to the success of our students, while encouraging young
people to pursue science and engineering careers."
This local program builds off the two companies' partnership
with SSEC to bring teachers from Louisiana and other strategic communities to
Washington, D.C. Many Louisiana teachers who have been able to
take part in that opportunity will be in Baton Rouge on Feb.
18 to share what they have learned and help build a
community of educators around the Forum.
"We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Dow and CH2M
to bring our program of scientific discovery and advanced
professional development to Louisiana. This experience affords teachers
the opportunity to engage in authentic STEM experiences by working
directly with scientists and other experts, and bring the exciting
learnings back to their local classrooms," said Carol O'Donnell, director of the Smithsonian
Science Education Center. "We are grateful to both companies for
their commitment to empowering teachers to prepare and inspire the
next generation of our STEM workforce."
In addition, Dow STEM Ambassador volunteers and CH2M employee
volunteers will provide ongoing engagement to the teachers in their
classrooms by offering continued support on various topics
including safety, how to bring technical expertise to life for
students, and by offering in person STEM-related classroom
demonstrations and career talks.
This collaboration is a strong example of both companies'
efforts to connect employee engagement with sustainability. Dow's
2025 Sustainability Goal, Engaging Employees for
Impact, has committed to using employee volunteerism to
impact the lives of 1 billion people; and CH2M fosters employee
engagement to develop sustainable communities and address global
challenges.
Learn more about Dow's commitment to building the workforce of
tomorrow.
Discover CH2M's STEM education and global citizenship
strategy.
Learn about the Smithsonian Science Education Center.
About CH2M
CH2M leads the professional services
industry delivering sustainable solutions benefiting societal,
environmental and economic outcomes with the development of
infrastructure and industry. In this way, CH2Mers make a positive
difference providing consulting, design, engineering and management
services for clients in water; environment and nuclear;
transportation; energy and industrial markets, from iconic
infrastructure to global programs like the Olympic Games. Ranked
among the World's Most Ethical Companies and top firms in
environmental consulting and program management, CH2M in 2016
became the first professional services firm honored with the World
Environment Center Gold Medal Award for efforts advancing
sustainable development. Connect with CH2M at www.ch2m.com;
LinkedIn; Twitter; and Facebook.
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 material, polymer, chemical and biological science to
help address many of the world's most challenging problems, such as
the need for fresh food, safer and more sustainable transportation,
clean water, energy efficiency, more durable infrastructure, and
increasing agricultural productivity. Dow's integrated,
market-driven portfolio delivers a broad range of technology-based
products and solutions to customers in 175 countries and in
high-growth sectors such as packaging, infrastructure,
transportation, consumer care, electronics, and agriculture. In
2016, Dow had annual sales of $48
billion and employed approximately 56,000 people worldwide.
The Company's more than 7,000 product families are manufactured at
189 sites in 34 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.
About the Smithsonian Science Education Center
The
mission of the Smithsonian Science Education Center (formerly the
National Science Resources Center) is to improve K-12 teaching and
learning of science for all students in the United States and throughout the world.
The center is nationally and internationally recognized for the
quality of its programs and its impact on K-12 science
education.
Contact:
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Marie
Gettel-Gilmartin
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|
CH2M, Corporate
Marketing and Communications
|
|
Marie.Gettel-Gilmartin@ch2m.com
|
|
503-860-4254
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|
|
|
Abby Cook
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|
The Dow Chemical
Company
|
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apcook@dow.com
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225-353-8968
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SOURCE CH2M