- Since its establishment in the late 1970s, the SME Education Foundation has focused on bolstering the manufacturing and technology industries by improving the experience of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) students. SME preps primary school students for the pursuit of engineering and engineering technology degrees by investing in these branches of education, as well as in computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) education.
- SME offers product life cycle management, or PLM, software grants in association with the engineering conglomerate Siemens. Rather than awarding monetary sums, these grants give schools current PLM software tools for use in their engineering curricula. Awarded software includes products from NX, Open Enterprise Visualization, Parasolid, Solid Edge, Teamcenter and Tecnomatix. In addition to software, grantees receive free training services, software upgrades and technical support.
- As of 2011, the SME Education Foundation awards CIM and Gateway Academy grants only to solicited parties. Gateway Academy grants allow middle-schoolers to participate in a week-long day camp that lays the foundation of STEM principles via hands-on study, including areas as varied as aeronautics, eco-design and robotics. CIM grants help students learn computer-integrated manufacturing via exposing them to computer modeling, robotics and flexible manufacturing systems. At the time of writing, SME does not accept unsolicited proposals for these grants; however, the foundation does accept proposals from those they have personally encouraged to apply.
- Individual SME grant amounts vary; in the case of CIM and Gateway grants, the awards cover the cost of enrollment for their respective programs. At the time of publication, the SME Education Foundation had funded more than $17.3 million dollars worth of grants across 35 colleges and universities. In addition, the organization has provided $5.3 million dollars worth of funding to STEM youth programs and over $4.7 million in scholarships for manufacturing-related degrees. Potential grantees apply via submitting an application -- available at SME's official website -- and a proposal. Proposals must be relevant to the foundation's vision, express a strong connection to manufacturing, detail a collaborative approach and clearly state the anticipated outcome of the project.
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