FUSE Partners with Smithfield Foundation
Northwestern University's FUSE Studios, a high-quality and results-driven educational program, received a $350,000 contribution from the Smithfield Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Smithfield Foods, Inc., to help transform science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) learning in schools across America.
The company’s donation will support 20 new FUSE Studios in participating school districts throughout the Midwest and North Carolina beginning in Fall 2020. FUSE studios are now operating in a wide range of elementary, middle, and high schools – public and private, urban and rural -- from Schaumburg to Helsinki, Finland.
By fall, 200 schools will be offering FUSE, reaching more than 26,000 students across Chicago, the United States, and internationally next year.
"This grant helps us bring engaging STEAM education into schools that benefits both students and the community as a whole," said Henry Mann, FUSE program director. "Our innovative approach gives students access to a diverse suite of challenges to ignite creativity, collaboration, and discovery through tasks not found in a typical classroom setting.”
Students taking part in FUSE programs receive benefits beyond the learning studio where their developing skills and abilities are transferred into their work and classroom environments. Program participants also experience an environment with abundant peer support, encouraging the development of necessary ‘non-cognitive’ skills, such as problem-solving, persistence, and working together.
Smithfield’s substantial contribution to FUSE is part of the company’s recently announced charitable grant program that aims to address the unique needs of Smithfield’s local communities.
“At Smithfield, we firmly believe in the power of education to transform communities,” said Keira Lombardo, executive vice president of corporate affairs and compliance for Smithfield Foods and president of the Smithfield Foundation. “We are pleased to support FUSE’s efforts to open new learning studios in the communities we call home to facilitate new interests and help develop students for the 21st century.”