PPG Partnership Provides Funding for STEM Learning, Exploration

PPG partnered with AdoptAClassroom.org to support science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education for students in 10 middle and high schools in five communities where PPG operates.

Aiming to equip teachers with the tools they need to provide their students with an understanding of and exposure to the possibilities in STEM, the partnership provided grants to improve each school’s STEM education programs and mark the recent Teacher Appreciation Week. The grants reached more than 3,500 students at schools in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Atlanta, Georgia; Huntsville, Alabama; Greensboro, North Carolina; and Oak Creek, Wisconsin.

“We are inspired by the passion and devotion these teachers have to enrich the minds of their young students through STEM education,” says Malesia Dunn, executive director, PPG Foundation and corporate global social responsibility. “We’re proud to partner with AdoptAClassroom.org for a second year to provide students with the tools and programs they need to be successful.”

The programs implemented by each school increased overall student engagement in STEM by 25%, according to AdoptAClassroom.org. 

“The impact was profound,” says Vicki Ammer, Perry Traditional Academy teacher and grant recipient in Pittsburgh. “Students looked forward to hearing about what was planned for the grant and were engaged and excited. They looked forward to learning because, for the first time, they felt like they had access to some of the things students have at other schools.” 

With the Foundation’s grant, Perry Traditional Academy was able to purchase a variety of STEM-related tools to benefit more than 100 of its students, which is nearly a third of the school’s student population.

“In addition to student academic impact, the grants also have increased the morale of both teachers and students,” says Carolyn Aberman, chief corporate partnerships and marketing officer, AdoptAClassroom.org.