Grainger Foundation representatives present ACC a check for $20,000 to fund scholarships for students in skilled trades programs.

The Grainger Foundation has donated $20,000 to the ACC Foundation to provide scholarships for the 2012-2013 academic year for students in several of the college’s industrial trade programs. The donation will fund eight $2,500 scholarships to students in the Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Technology, Welding Technology, Building Construction, and Automotive Technology programs.

“This generous donation from the Grainger Foundation helps ensures that financial need will not stand in the way of preparing students for careers in these fields,” says Edwina Carrington, chair of the ACC Foundation. “We are proud to partner with Grainger, whose commitment to education will continue to strengthen our local workforce for years to come.”

Grainger, an industrial supply company, has been serving Texas businesses for more than 75 years, providing supplies and equipment needed to keep their facilities running.

“Grainger recognizes the growing gap in the number of skilled tradesmen in today’s society, and by partnering with ACC, it allows our company to support this critical area,” says Dane Williams, branch manager of Grainger’s North Austin location. “These scholarships will also provide students the opportunity to learn skilled trades that are needed to work in these technical fields.”

Since 2009, the Grainger Foundation has contributed $85,000 to the ACC Foundation in support of technical education in the form of scholarships. To date, 28 students have received Grainger Scholarships.

For more information on scholarships at ACC, visit austincc.edu/foundation.