DAVIDSON, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Global climate innovator Trane Technologies (NYSE:TT) has provided the Science Museum of Minnesota with over $280,000 to support the Kitty Andersen Youth Science Center (KAYSC) STEM Freedom School. The donation will complete the funding needed for the KAYSC’s summer program combining the Science Museum’s innovative approach to STEM education and workforce development with the highly effective Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) Freedom School model.
Freedom Schools are a national CDF program that work to prevent summer learning loss in students by igniting a passion for reading and a love of learning. The KAYSC, which is located within the museum, helps students from demographics underrepresented in STEM across the Twin Cities learn about careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), through STEM Justice programming centered around how STEM tools, technologies, and processes can help achieve social equity.
“At Trane Technologies, we enjoy a culture that actively supports volunteerism and a workforce that enthusiastically embraces it,” said Deidra Parrish Williams, Trane Technologies’ leader of Global Corporate Social Responsibility. “Through volunteer opportunities, like the ones provided at the Science Museum of Minnesota, our employees are able to use their unique skills and knowledge to excite the imaginations of young students in hopes that they will become sustainability innovators in years to come.”
The sponsorship is part of Trane Technologies’ corporate citizenship strategy, Sustainable Futures. Trane Technologies is committed to investing $100 million by 2030 to ensure students from demographics underrepresented in the STEM field have access to healthy learning environments, early exposure to sustainability concepts and support in accessing rewarding green and STEM careers. The company has also set an ambitious goal of donating 500,000 employee volunteer hours to programs that support Sustainable Futures.
"Being the first Freedom School in the country to implement a unique emphasis on STEM and social justice learning, we are so excited to be working with Trane Technologies in engaging with our KAYSC youth scholars and young adults to innovate new ways to meet workforce, youth, and community needs while navigating meaningful career pathways," Joseph Adamji, Director of the Center for Equity Systems Change at the Science Museum of Minnesota, said. “In our Freedom School, all STEM learning is focused on helping youth begin to see STEM as a tool for dismantling systemic oppression and achieving collective liberation. This support from Trane Technologies is helping us to build toward impacts that will continue far beyond the program, for our youth and for the field."
Trane Technologies and its strategic brands Trane® and Thermo King® share a deep commitment to the Minneapolis-St. Paul region, where the company has operated for over 80 years. More than 1,100 employees live and work in the greater Twin Cities area, including at the company’s Thermo King headquarters in Bloomington; Trane Commercial Controls plant and corporate offices in White Bear Lake; and area Trane Commercial Sales Office and Parts & Supply Stores.
About Trane Technologies
Trane Technologies is a global climate innovator. Through our strategic brands Trane® and Thermo King®, and our portfolio of environmentally responsible products and services, we bring efficient and sustainable climate solutions to buildings, homes and transportation. For more on Trane Technologies, visit tranetechnologies.com.
About Kitty Andersen Youth Science Center
The Kitty Andersen Youth Science Center was established by the Science Museum of Minnesota in 1996 to engage girls, youth of color and economically disadvantaged youth in informal STEM learning. Its mission is to empower youth to change our world through science.
