Power:Ed Awards Five Grants Totaling $125,000
Columbia, S.C., November 17, 2021 — Power:Ed, a philanthropy of SC Student Loan, has awarded $25,000 to Hilton Head Hospital Auxiliary, $25,000 to Junior Achievement of Greater SC, $25,000 to Greenville Chamber Foundation, $25,000 to South Carolina Independent Colleges & Universities Inc and $25,000 to Teachers’ Supply Closet.
Hilton Head Hospital Auxiliary awards to nursing students who are the children of hospital employees and volunteers from two hospitals, Hilton Head Hospital and Coastal Carolina Hospital, and also the Bluffton-Okatie Outpatient Center and the Bluffton Medical Campus. In addition, its nursing student scholarship program is helping to mitigate the nursing shortage, which currently exists in South Carolina and Beaufort County. Scholarships are provided to nursing students attending a four-year nursing program at USC Beaufort and a two-year program at the Technical College of the Lowcountry.
“We are grateful to Power:Ed for designating the Auxiliary as the beneficiary of this $25,000 grant,” said David Hales, President of the Hilton Head Hospital Auxiliary. “By increasing our scholarship incentives through this grant, we hope to encourage more students to enter the fields of nursing and healthcare and to remain in the low country or South Carolina after they attain their degrees.”
Junior Achievement of Greater SC prepares students in Richland and Lexington County Schools for their future and teaches them how to make intelligent financial decisions. Its mission is "to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy" through experiential, real-world, volunteer-led programs focused on developing workforce readiness, soft skills, financial literacy and entrepreneurship.
The Power:Ed grant will support the Junior Achievement program, JA Finance Park Virtual. This program has an innovative curriculum in financial literacy education. Through this JA initiative, students will see the long-term impact of their education, savings and credit decisions. With $25,000 from the Power:Ed grant, Junior Achievement (JA) will pilot the new JA Finance Park Virtual program in 25 high school classes teaching financial literacy education in Lexington and Richland County.
“Junior Achievement is grateful for the support from Power:Ed to fund JA Finance Park Virtual,” said Casey Pash, President and CEO of Junior Achievement of Greater South Carolina. “Now more than ever, our students need the life skill of financial literacy! Through a simulation of life experience, students will be able to plan for their financial future through this JA program. Together Junior Achievement and Power:Ed can inspire our future to succeed!”
Greenville Chamber Foundation supports the vision of the Greenville Chamber, which is to create a globally competitive Upstate economy where business succeeds and people prosper. LaunchGVL is the Chamber's partnership with Greenville County Schools to provide paid internship opportunities for high school juniors and seniors, especially for typically disadvantaged students. Since its inception, 174 students have been placed in internships with an area business. Some of these students will go directly into the workforce with that employer. Others will be going into post-secondary opportunities, community college or a four-year institution.
“The Greenville Chamber Foundation is honored to receive grant funding from Power: Ed for LaunchGVL,” said Carlos Phillips, President and CEO, Greenville Chamber. “We appreciate their partnership in supporting thoughtful, talent pipeline solutions for our business community. This $25,000 award will significantly reduce barriers, open doors and provide opportunity youth with access to paid work-based learning experiences and post-secondary credentials.”
LaunchGVL provides an opportunity for these students to have a meaningful experience in career exploration to make a better-informed decision about their career path.
South Carolina Independent Colleges & Universities Inc (SCICU) is an association of 21 independent colleges and universities in SC, founded in 1953 to promote independent higher education in SC. The SCICU Student/Faculty Undergraduate Research Program was created in 1995 to ensure opportunities for undergraduate students to participate in significant research at SCICU-member colleges and universities. The program has been used as a model for other state associations to develop undergraduate research programs. The $25,000 grant from Power:Ed will support participation in the SCICU undergraduate research program by students from the five historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) that are members of SCICU.
“SCICU deeply thanks the South Carolina Student Loan Corporation for its support of students at SCICU-member HBCUs interested in participating in our Student-Faculty Undergraduate Research Program,” said SCICU President and CEO Jeff Perez. “With this grant, SCICU-member HBCUs will be empowered to further encourage students to pursue faculty-mentored research typically only available in graduate school.”
Teachers’ Supply Closet (TSC) was founded 14 years ago to ensure that every student can attend school prepared to learn. Teachers at high-poverty, Title I schools are invited to "shop" for free at TSC's store/warehouse. Teachers leave the supply closet with enough supplies for every student in the classroom. TSC ensures that teachers do not need to provide supplies at their own expense and that students are prepared to succeed.
“Teachers’ Supply Closet is grateful for the generous support of Power:Ed. Teachers' Supply Closet shares Power:Ed's goal to help minority, low-income, first-generation students set goals and reach for them. By equipping high school students with the supplies needed for 21st-century learning, Teachers’ Supply Closet is an essential part of closing the gap and helping all students, regardless of economic background. Our mission is only possible because of donors like Power:Ed who share our mission and invest in our goals.”
About Power:Ed
Power:Ed, a philanthropy of SC Student Loan is dedicated to creating opportunities for South Carolina’s youth by supporting low-income, minority, and first-generation students; improving access to college and degree completion; and creating pathways to quality workforce opportunities.
If you're interested in applying for a grant or partnering with Power:Ed, visit power-ed.org. The deadline for the next round of grant funding is January 1, 2022.