Educators laud $1.55 million from Chevron
By The Bakersfield Californian
Flanked by two banners -- one that read, "The future will run on innovation," and another stating, "Today's explorers have engineering degrees" -- representatives from local colleges, middle schools and high schools hailed Chevron on Tuesday for a $1.55 million donation to science education here.
"The money Chevron is spending, it really makes a difference," said Mike Zulfa, assistant superintendent of instruction at the Kern High School District. Five high school campuses in KHSD will get $170,000 of Chevron's donation for Project Lead the Way, an educational program focusing on science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM.
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CHEVRON DONATIONS
Cal State Bakersfield
* $400,000: Support the REVS-UP 2012 program, which offers hands-on research experience for high school students and teachers during the summer.
* $200,000: Chevron STEM Academy, which provides free college-level courses to high school students.
* $100,000: School of Natural Sciences, Mathematics, and Engineering's student center, which provides advising and registration help for students.
* $130,000: Dual credit geology courses for high school students where they earn high school and college credit at the same time.
* $90,000: Support the development of a bachelor's degree in Engineering Sciences program.
Bakersfield College
* $100,000: Support the development of a STEM Education-Workforce Development Initiative for scholarships, MESA Week Zero, peer mentoring, and electro-mechanical program support.
Taft College
* $100,000: STEM-Workforce Development Initiative, support for Young Innovators Club, K-16 Collaboration, and energy technology training program.
Kern High
* $170,000: Project Lead the Way's Pathway to Engineering Programs at Bakersfield, Centennial, Golden Valley, Highland and Shafter high schools.
Fruitvale Junior High
* $25,000: Project Lead the Way's Gateway to Technology Program.
Standard Middle School
* $25,000: Project Lead the Way's Gateway to Technology Program.
Lincoln Junior High
* $25,000: Project Lead the Way's Gateway to Technology Program
Richland Junior High
* $25,000: Project Lead the Way's Gateway to Technology Program
DonorsChoose.Org
* $160,000: Mini-grants for teachers to support innovative classroom projects in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.
Source: Chevron
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Centennial High School student Luke Singleton explains his Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car to Rita Gonzalez, a Standard Middle School teacher. He designed the vehicle and learned some of the principles of engineering in his class at Centennial. Singleton and other students showed science, engineering and design projects at an event held by Chevron at Bakersfield College to celebrate National Engineers Week Tuesday. Chevron has donated $1.55 million that will help more than a dozen science, technology, math and engineering programs at local colleges and schools.
The donation is expected to benefit hundreds of teachers and thousands of students on Kern County's campuses who are teaching and studying in STEM programs -- many of them fully supported by Chevron giving, officials said.
The company in recent years has partnered with local schools and colleges in the programs, donating millions to science education to encourage local students to pursue STEM careers. Chevron hopes those students will get STEM-based degrees at local higher education institutions, and one day work for the company here.
"We know there's a lot of talent right here in our backyard," said Adam Alvidrez, Chevron spokesman.
The company hopes to groom that talent starting with early grades. The donation -- $100,000 of it -- will immediately impact four junior high campuses hosting Gateway to Technology, which will lead into the high school programs hosted on five campuses.
Bakersfield College and Taft College's programs will get from $100,000 each for various science programs and initiatives. More than $900,000 will go toward Cal State Bakersfield programs aimed at grooming future scientists and engineers.
CSUB President Horace Mitchell on Tuesday called the continued work between Chevron and local education agencies a "partnership for excellence" and acclaimed Chevron as "a model" for investing in the community.
Chevron is also giving $160,000 toward DonorsChoose.org, an online charity website that hosts local educators' school project ideas. The public can donate to the projects, and Chevron then matches donations.
-- Jorge Barrientos, Californian staff
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Kern County has agreed to pay a Kern River Valley family $1 million for wrongfully taking their son in 2008 when the family was in a dispute with the South Fork Union School District over how school officials were dealing with the boy's food allergies.