9-12-03
GE FOUNDATION AWARDS LEARNING EXCELLENCE
GRANT
TO INTEGRATED BUSINESS AND ENGINEERING PROGRAM
The GE Foundation recently awarded $14,479 to Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, completing payment of a $176,000 Learning Excellence Grant. The grant supports the ongoing development of an integrated business and engineering curriculum with an entrepreneurial focus.
"Education is the cornerstone of success. The GE Foundation supports universities and colleges that provide students with comprehensive and hands-on programs that combine different fields of study." said Charlene Begley, CEO of GE Transportation Systems.
"With the grant we received from the GE Foundation, we were able to begin the process of creating students that are more entrepreneurial," said Dr. Robert Simoneau, director of the School of Engineering and Engineering Technology and the lead investigator on the project. "This is one more way we can create an atmosphere favorable to business in Erie County."
The final portion of the GE Foundation grant will support a national conference at Penn State Behrend where faculty with successful collaborative programs will share their best practices. The conference will result in developing a curriculum model for other schools to use and consider as they begin business and engineering collaborative programs.
The GE Foundation grant also helped foster the development of the Erie County Collegiate Small Business Plan Competition, sponsored by the Ben Franklin Technology Partners and the Black School of Business at Penn State Erie.
The GE Foundation, the philanthropic foundation of the General Electric Company, invests in improving educational quality and access and strengthening community organizations in GE communities around the world. GE, the GE Foundation, and GE employees and retirees contributed $100 million to community and educational institutions last year.
Contact:
Loretta Brandon
814-898-6063 (O)
E-mail: lzb6@psu.edu