Apr 30, 2024   SOURCE: PR NewsWire

MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC AMERICA FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES $2 MILLION IN NEW GRANTS

Focused on Access to Careers in Technology and the Trades for Youth with Disabilities

WASHINGTON, April 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation (MEAF) announced today $2 million in new grants, and $615K in continuing projects. The funding supports MEAF's new Access to Careers in Technology and the Trades Inclusion Initiative, which is designed to empower youth with disabilities to lead productive lives through increased employment.

"Our Access to Careers in Technology and the Trades Inclusion Initiative builds off the success we have seen this past year in collaborating with our grant recipients and industry associations in replicating model disability employment programs to create a pipeline of skilled talent to access careers in high demand fields," says Kevin R. Webb, MEAF's senior director.

Careers in Technology

In collaboration with the Consumer Technology Association Foundation, MEAF is helping to promote accessibility and tech careers at CES(®) and throughout the year, supporting projects like:

    --  FIRST(®) Access: To introduce inclusive programming for all students
        into FIRST competitions.
    --  Exceptional Minds Growth Initiative: To prepare artists on the autism
        spectrum at?Exceptional Minds?for career pathways towards entertainment
        and related industry jobs across digital arts, animation, visual
        effects, gaming, and other fields.
    --  Aspiritech Remote Employment Academy: To provide training and
        internships leading to careers in Accessibility, IT and Quality
        Assurance testing for neurodiverse individuals at Aspiritech.
    --  NSITE IT Program Expansion: To help blind and visually impaired
        individuals access training at NSITE and go on to careers in Information
        Technology.

Careers in the Trades

In support of the Association for Career and Technical Education and its Inclusion, Access, Equity and Diversity Initiative, MEAF is helping to build a pipeline of Career Tech Talent in fields like:

    --  Advanced Manufacturing: Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs, the foundation of
        the Fabricators and Manufacturer's Association, offers Inclusive Summer
        Camps to introduce students to careers in manufacturing. FedCap's
        Teaching the Autism Community Trades (TACT) trains and places students
        as heat pump installers, electricians, welders, carpenters, and
        mechanics. The Uniquely Abled Project is establishing Uniquely Abled
        Academies at trade schools and community colleges to train and place
        autistic students in jobs as Computer Numerical Control (CNC) and
        Robotics Operators. CAST is introducing students with disabilities to
        careers in biomanufacturing.
    --  Electronics and Plastics Recycling and Beyond: Blue Star Recyclers is
        sharing its successful disability employment model by creating Counties
        of Inclusion, bringing together schools, service providers, employers,
        and chambers of commerce in counties to create a pipeline of capable
        talent.
    --  Hospitality, Healthcare, Microenterprise and More: Butler Tech's Project
        LIFE(TM) program and Celebrate EDU's microenterprise training introduces
        students with intellectual and development disabilities to career
        opportunities in a variety of fields. Cincinnati Children's Project
        SEARCH internship program provides total workplace immersion and
        job-skills acquisition leading to competitive employment. MEAF's support
        will help more than 36,000 Project SEARCH alumni advance in their
        careers.

Access to Opportunity

Access to careers in technology and the trades starts from a strong foundation of quality experiential education and awareness. MEAF helps build access and awareness by supporting:

    --  Documentary Films: The Emmy(®) winning "My Disability Roadmap" and new
        feature-length film "The Ride Ahead" by Dan and Samuel Habib, as well as
        the film "All You Hear is Noise", helps promote inclusion and the
        understanding of the capabilities of people with disabilities.
    --  Disability Mentoring: Partners for Youth with Disabilities National
        Disability Mentoring Coalition and innovative mentoring programs like
        Disability EmpowHer Network helps advance disability mentoring in
        national MENTOR programs.
    --  Quality Education: The DePaul School for Hearing and Speech is
        introducing a career development curriculum, the World Institute on
        Disability offers The Global Heumann Fellowship, and Kinney Center for
        Autism Education and Support at St. Jospeh's University shares knowledge
        with other colleges.
    --  Experiential Work: Vocational training at Spero Vineyards and Growing
        Together Aquaponics, peer empowerment models at Vanderbilt University
        and Children's Hospital Los Angeles, and Bridges from School to Work
        help youth with disabilities take the next steps.
    --  Inclusive Grantmaking: MEAF works with its peers in philanthropy, such
        as PEAK Grantmaking and Workforce Matters to encourage grant makers to
        include support for people with disabilities in their grant programs.

"This is the first year MEAF's annual grant making has exceeded $2 million. We are excited to see the growth of disability employment to support a more inclusive society," concludes Webb.

MEAF's $2.6 million in grant commitments to 24 organizations will be distributed over the next two years. MEAF will also match up to $320,000 in donations made by employees in 2024 to help build inclusive and sustainable communities in the United States.

The Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation, based in the Washington, D.C. area, was established in 1991 by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and the Mitsubishi Electric U.S. group companies, which produce, sell, and distribute a wide range of consumer, industrial, commercial, and professional electronics products. The Foundation has contributed more than $26 million to organizations that are empowering young people with disabilities to lead more inclusive and productive lives. To learn more, visit www.MEAF.org.

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SOURCE Mitsubishi Electric