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Youth

Spring 2022 STEM Education and Youth Leadership Grants

Posted 06/07/2022 by Kimberlee Sinclair Executive Director, H.B. Fuller Company Foundation

Recently, the H.B. Fuller Company Foundation awarded grants to nine nonprofits serving youth in the Twin Cities. These grants support STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education and youth leadership development in our headquarters community.

STEM Education grants support initiatives that provide added exposure to science, technology, engineering and math concepts and experiences, sparking the interest of our next generation.

Youth Leadership grants fund programs that help young people become successful, productive adults and the leaders of tomorrow.

We are proud to support the following organizations:

  • Friends of the Mississippi River

    Friends of the Mississippi River (FMR) engages people to protect, restore and enhance the Mississippi River and its watershed in the Twin Cities region.

    Support from the H.B. Fuller Company Foundation is benefitting two programs of FMR: the Environmental Stewards Program, a STEM-based environmental education program for local youth, as well as the Environmental Stewardship Institute, a youth development program that offers career pathways opportunities for BIPOC an underserved youth. Through these programs, FMR engages young people in learning about local land and water resources, developing professional skills and career pathways, and inspiring the next generation of environmental stewards.

  • MINNDEPENDENT

    MINNDEPENDENT connects and strengthens Minnesota’s independent schools through exceptional training, resources, and advocacy so they can be student-centered and mission-driven.

    A grant from H.B. Fuller will support the Power2Share program at four Twin Cities metro member schools. Power2Share is a new and innovative STEM solar education program that empowers young people to be agents for positive change and highlights clean, renewable energy as a solution to some of the world’s most pressing challenges. Going through an interactive course in solar energy, participants build a Solar Suitcase for a school that lacks electricity, lighting the lives of students in other parts of the world. It’s hands-on learning with real-world impact.

  • Minnesota Urban Debate League

    The Minnesota Urban Debate League empowers students through competitive academic debate to become engaged learners, critical thinkers, and active global citizens who are effective advocates for themselves and their communities. Debate programming develops informed and active citizens by improving academic opportunity in schools and growing personal development for a lifetime.

    Support from the H.B. Fuller Company Foundation will provide debate programming for Twin Cities middle and high school students. Programs include national topic high school and middle school debate, Spanish Debate League, East African Debate, Financial Literacy Leadership Debates, and speech and debate summer camp.

  • National Inventors Hall of Fame/Camp Invention

    The mission of the National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF) is to be a catalyst for change through recognizing inventors and invention, promoting creativity and advancing the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship.

    A grant from the H.B. Fuller Company Foundation will underwrite participation costs for economically disadvantaged Ramsey County youth during summer 2022. Camp Invention works to combat disinterest and show children that a career in STEM, one of the fastest growing career segments, can be exciting. The program will also help reduce the summer and COVID learning loss for students and close the overall achievement gap between at-risk children and their more affluent peers.

  • Project SUCCESS

    Project Success collaborates with local public school districts to motivate and inspire young people to dream about the future, and gives them the tools they need to achieve their goals.

    A grant to Project Success (PS) will support all Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) high school students in and outside the classroom through connecting students to their purpose with College and Career Readiness programs. Through hands-on, 10-week certificate courses and day-long workshops that focus on tech subjects such as computer coding, workplace and college tours that explore tech careers and education, and caring support from highly trained, culturally competent PS staff, PS supports teens in building confidence, creating tangible plans for their futures, and forming a foundation for school and career success.

  • Urban Roots

    Urban Roots is a St. Paul-based organization whose mission is to cultivate and empower youth through nature, healthy food, and community. Their vision is a world where all communities have unlimited access to nature and healthy food

    Our grant will support Urban Roots’ programming that offers paid internships and learning opportunities around conservation to 34 low-income, majority BIPOC youth (ages 14-18) and educational opportunities to an additional 250 low-income students (grades 6-12) each year. Youth participants gain 21st-century job and leadership skills, become community stewards, cultivate interest, and gain knowledge in STEM topics, and prepare for success in post-secondary education or employment in high-growth, STEM-oriented careers, including natural resource management and clean energy.

  • Wilderness Inquiry

    Wilderness Inquiry’s mission is to connect people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities to each other and the natural world through shared outdoor adventures. Through their core values of paddling together, finding a way, and seeking the exceptional, they strive to ensure that the outdoors is a place where everyone belongs.

    Wilderness Inquiry received a grant in support of their Outdoor Credit Recovery program, which utilizes outdoor engagement as a medium for teaching/delivering academic content focused on science, math, English Language Arts, and other STEM and academic subjects. Through outdoor learning opportunities, students earn academic credit while becoming familiar with local outdoor spaces and developing an interest in future outdoor participation. This program utilizes the Minnesota Freshwater Quest tool as a learning platform, a project that was developed with previous support from H.B. Fuller.

  • Youth Farm and Market Project

    For 27 years, Youth Farm and Market has used food as a catalyst for community engagement and leadership development - food is their tool to change the world.

    Funds from the H.B. Fuller Foundation will help support several important aspects of their work on the Northside of Minneapolis. In the spring and summer, North Minneapolis youth will be managing farm spaces, harvesting produce, hosting community events, and distributing food to their peers and neighbors. In the fall and winter, youth participants will engage in cooking and greenhouse classes and plan for the upcoming growing season. Year-round, youth engage in reflection, and evaluation, and youth leadership programming and training.

  • YWCA of Minneapolis

    The mission of the YWCA is to eliminate racism, empower women and girls, and promote peace, freedom, and dignity for all.

    The H.B. Fuller Company Foundation elected to support the YWCA as they empower girls in STEM through their Girls Inc. Eureka! Program. YWCA Minneapolis’ Girls Inc. Eureka program is a multi-year STEM program that engages the same cohort of girls from grades 8-12. Programming begins with summer intensive sessions (with opportunities to spend time with University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering STEM labs, leadership development, internships, college, and career readiness) and continues with workshops throughout the year (financial literacy, learning to make healthy life decisions, food technology, auto mechanics).

    Eureka 2022 Flyer: https://www.ywcampls.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Eureka-flyer-2022.pdf

The foundation will be awarding an additional $400,000 in support of racial equity, STEM, and youth leadership programming around the world throughout 2022.

Since 1986, H.B. Fuller has been supporting communities around the world where our employees live and work through the H.B. Fuller Company Foundation. Each year, H.B. Fuller awards more than $1.3 million in grants to support STEM education, youth leadership development, racial equity, as well as other causes selected by employees. H.B. Fuller is proud to partner with these organizations to support the next generation of innovators and leaders and to create a more just society.

Grantmaking is just one way H.B. Fuller supports the communities where our employees live and work. Learn more about how we give back by following #HBFullerCares on social media and by visiting www.hbfuller.com/community.

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