Cal State East Bay Receives Major Grant For New Center
EMERYVILLE (KCBS) – Cal State East Bay is receiving more than half a million dollars in grant money from a major pharmaceutical company.
The $540,000 grant from the Bayer USA Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Bayer Corporation, will be used to create the Center for STEM Education on the Hayward campus.
"This is a major grant for us. Our foundation isn't so large that we have this kind of money to spread broadly," said Bayer Corporation President and CEO Greg Babe.
KCBS' Anna Duckworth Reports:
The center will enhance and help to coordinate existing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education activities at the university.
Cal State East Bay President Dr. Mohammad Qayoumi said with the U.S. falling behind globally in STEM subjects, the center's focus will be to systematically get students interested in science and technology.
"This will be providing opportunities for grade school kids, where we can be a resource for teachers when they need material," said Qayoumi. "Hopefully we can provide more and more training programs for teachers."
The center will also be used to attract more college students to become math and science teachers, something Babe said is all in Bayer's best interest.
"Our success is driven by innovation and creativity, and in order to feed that, we need science-trained students," he said.
The grant will be administered over three years and will establish the Bayer Executive Directorship for the center.
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