The Ripken Foundation and Tennessee Valley Authority teamed up to install a new STEM Center at the Rescue Me Project (RMP) in Sheffield, AL. This partnership will provide the RMP with educational STEM tools, like Chromebooks and a 3D printer, and the Ripken STEM curriculum. The RMP is a nonprofit that provides local Sheffield youth with mentoring and education.
The Ripken Foundation and TVA have installed 27 STEM Centers together in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. “I believe that we can do a lot of good things on our own, but with dedicated partners we can achieve great things,” said Cal Ripken, Jr. “Our partnership with Tennessee Valley Authority is evidence of that.”
TVA has been a dedicated partner, helping the Ripken Foundation bring STEM education to youth across the country. “We’re excited to partner with the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation to help provide opportunities for children across our region,” said TVA Executive Vice President and Chief External Relations Officer Jeannette Mills. “Our commitment to STEM has always been at the heart of TVA’s mission, and this new initiative gives us the chance to make an even more tangible impact and investment on the future of the STEM workforce.”
TVA Southern Regional Vice President Jared Mitchem echoed Mills' sentiment. “The quality of life we have in North Alabama, it takes partnership, investment and a view for the future… and that’s exactly what they’re doing right here at The Rescue Me Project,” said Mitchem. “So, the kids who are here in the STEM lab are picking up skills and learning things that they’ll be able to apply on the job someday. They’ll be able to do things we haven’t even imagined yet.”
Both the staff and youth at the RMP are excited to use their new STEM Center and all of the new equipment. “We’re very grateful because the community has come and gotten involved with the RMP for so many years,” said RMP Founder and President Dewayne Malone. “To be able to take it to another level with the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation and TVA, for them to invest and be a part of this STEM lab and bring it to us, it’s been a huge blessing to us and the students are excited for it as well.”
Read more about this partnership in The Flor-Ala's article here. To learn more about our STEM Center initiative, click here.