FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 18, 2018 | Contact: Becky Carroll | [email protected] |312-350-5260
Lumity will receive $20,000 as part of the Project Innovation Grant Challenge presented by NBC5, Telemundo Chicago, and the NBCUniversal Foundation.
Chicago, IL – Lumity, a Chicago-based non-profit that provides teens and youth with transformational experiences to prepare them for lifelong STEM careers, was named a 2018 ‘Project Innovation’ Grant Challenge Winner. Lumity will receive $20,000 from the NBCUniversal Foundation and will use the money to expand STEM programs for 400 incoming freshmen at three Chicago high schools next school year.
Lumity prepares every student for a career in STEM through hands-on experiences in the workplace in partnership with STEM professionals and corporations. Lumity’s commitment to its community, in addition to its outstanding programming that leverages technology to solve everyday problems in the areas of civic engagement, skills for the digital economy, and STEM youth programming, are among some of the reasons for its selection.
“We could not be more thrilled with this grant, which is a recognition of the great work that our team, corporate partners, and school partners are doing every day to engage young people and prepare them for both life and a career in STEM,” said Kara Kennedy, Executive Director of Lumity. “We are so grateful to the NBCUniversal Foundation for their support of organizations like ours that are working every day to make a meaningful impact on the future of our youth.”
Lumity’s holistic program model is built upon a public-private partnership with firms across the Chicagoland area. Accenture, Allstate, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois and Cognizant, with additional support from CDW, Deloitte, PWC, USG Corp., Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust and Tata Consultancy Services and their employees generously donate their time and talents to help prepare high school students for employment through hosting career site visits and/or One-Day Challenges.
Unlike other programs that take short-term approaches, Lumity’s four-year program supports students throughout their high school years. To learn about Lumity, visit its website at www.lumity.org.
Background on Lumity:
Lumity provides a free, four-year (freshman through senior year) STEM curriculum at public high schools, with a goal of getting 25% of all its students to pursue careers in STEM. Its current partners include CPS and Waukegan public schools. Lumity employs a holistic approach to helping students prepare for careers in STEM while also developing essential life skills for success in any profession.
Lumity focuses on building and strengthening students’ critical thinking and problem-solving skills, teamwork and collaboration abilities, interpersonal skills, and presentation skills. Through a combination of real-world projects, STEM talks, career site visits, and career readiness training, students gain practical experience that prepares them for the workforce.
As part of its commitment to school partners, Lumity helps students gain hands-on job experience by guiding them in creating their own social enterprise business. This experience teaches them how to manage clients, collaborate effectively, meet deadlines, and navigate challenges in a professional setting.
