Media Contacts: Sandra Dawson TMT Manager, Hawaii Community Affairs 808-937-4250 Lydia Clements Hawaii Community Foundation Vice President, Foundation and Corporate Partnerships 808-935-1206 For Immediate Release THIRTY METER TELESCOPE FUNDS CAREER CONNECTED LEARNING PROGRAM FOR HAWAI‘I STEM PROGRAMS HILO, HI (July 12, 2018)– Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) is pleased to announce its continued commitment and support of the Hawai‘i Community Foundation’s (HCF) Career Connected Learning program with its fourth consecutive annual gift for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education on Hawai‘i Island to prepare students for the workforce of the future. Since 2014, TMT has committed $4 million for STEM education on Hawaii Island. “STEM education is a way of helping to grow Hawai‘i Island’s high-tech economy and ensure that there is a future workforce to support all of the opportunities available,” says Sandra Dawson, TMT Hawaii Community Affairs Manager. “We have seen first-hand how STEM programs are inspiring Hawai‘i’s youth and enabling them to pursue a career path that helps families and communities thrive.” In 2014, TMT launched The Hawai‘i Island New Knowledge (THINK) Fund at HCF, and committed $750,000 in annual funding to support programs with strong STEM components that benefit Hawai‘i Island students pursuing STEM related careers. Since that time, additional funding partners have contributed to the effort and provided more than 12,000 students and 900 educators on Hawai‘i Island with STEM-related programming. “Thanks to the generosity of donors, like TMT, programs like THINK Fund and Career Connected Learning allow us to support Hawai‘i students by providing fruitful learning opportunities that drive career exploration,” said Micah Kane, CEO and president of HCF. “As the need for STEM literacy continues to grow, so will the need for programs and activities that will ensure our keiki are prepared to thrive in the 21st century.” The Career Connected Learning program aims to increase the number of students completing STEM degrees and strengthen the alignment between various STEM learning programs that are currently available with the specific needs of Hawai‘i’s evolving workforce. In addition, the program aims to increase the number of teachers, career counselors and volunteers prepared to guide students through college and career pathways as well as cultivate partnerships between educators and employers to provide relevant work-based learning experiences for students in
Hawai‘i STEM fields. The THINK Fund at Hawaii Community Foundation has contributed $1.3 million towards this grant program. Career Connected Learning 2018 Grantees: Organization
Island
Akaka Foundation for Tropical Forests
Hawai‘i Island
Akamai Workforce Initiative Canada-France- Hawai‘i Telescope Corporation Girl Scouts of Hawai‘i
Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island
Hawai‘i Academy of Arts & Science Public Charter Hawai‘i Institute of Pacific Agriculture Hawai‘i Pacific University Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy Hilo Medical Center Foundation Hōkūpa‘a Holualoa Elementary School Honoka‘a Complex
Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island
Kahua Pa‘a Mua Inc. Ke Kula ‘o Nawahiokalani opu‘u Kealakehe High School Keaukaha One Youth Development Keonepoko Elementary School Mala‘ai - The Culinary Garden of Waimea Middle Mālama Kai Foundation
Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island
Marine Mammal Center
Hawai‘i Island
Parker School
Hawai‘i Island
Prince Dance Company Kea‘au Elementary School
Hawai‘i Island Hawai‘i Island
Program Teaching Change: Increasing youth participation in conservation related STEM fields in Hawai‘i Akamai Internship Program Maunakea Scholars Expansion with Mānoa Academy Hawai‘i Island and Kaua‘i STEM Fests and The Girl Scout Leadership Experience STEAM Learning Farm Mentorship & Apprenticeship Citizen Science Program Using eDNA HPA's Career-Connected STEM Pre-Health Career Corps Program Hōkūpa‘a Purpose-Driven Career Pathways Holualoa C2C Food Sustainability Project Honoka‘a Complex STEM Partnership: STEM Career Connected Learning Program KPM Ag STEM Connection Ko Kula Kai Expanding Excellent STEM Access in West Hawai'i RISE 21st Century After School Program KeOBots Grant Proposal STEM Learning in the Garden STEM to Careers via Boatbuilding and Watershed Science in North Kohala Na Kokua o ke Kai: Advancing Middle-School Marine Science and Ocean Conservation Expansion of Parker School's Technology Education Plan Rhythm of the Universe Kea‘au Robotics Inspire
The THINK Fund is open to all Hawai‘i Island students including teachers with STEM classroom projects, and organizations providing STEM programs that directly benefit Hawai‘i Island. To learn more about TMT’s THINK Fund, visit www.tmt.org. ### TMT The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) Project has been developed as collaboration among Caltech, the University of California (UC), the Association of Canadian Universities for Research in Astronomy (ACURA), and the national institutes of Japan, China, and India with the goal to design, develop, construct, and operate a thirty-meter class telescope and observatory on Maunakea in cooperation with the University of Hawaii (TMT Project). The TMT International Observatory LLC (TIO), a non-profit organization, was established in May 2014 to carry out the
construction and operation phases of the TMT Project. The Members of TIO are Caltech, UC, the National Institutes of Natural Sciences of Japan, the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Department of Science and Technology of India, and the National Research Council (Canada); the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) is a TIO Associate. Major funding has been provided by the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation. For more information about the TMT project, visit tmt.org, www.facebook.com/TMTHawaii or follow @TMTHawaii.