LEWISTON, Idaho – Lewis-Clark State College has received a $250,000 grant from the Sunderland Foundation for its new Career & Technical Education center, Sunderland Foundation officials have announced.
Since its inception in 1945, the Sunderland Foundation has focused on supporting construction projects for nonprofit organizations in the regions traditionally served by the Ash Grove Cement Company. Lester T. Sunderland served as the president of the cement company for 33 years and established the foundation, which is currently run by his descendants. The cement company serves the Pacific Northwest, Montana and Utah in the West, and seven states in the Plains and Midwest areas.
“This is yet another affirmation of the value-added benefit to students, businesses and our community that the new Career & Technical Education center will bring,” LCSC President Cynthia Pemberton said. “We are very appreciative of the Sunderland Foundation’s grant support.”
LCSC is set to start construction on a $20 million CTE center in the Lewiston Orchards in 2019. The project is expected to be complete by 2020 fall semester. The State of Idaho pledged $10 million to the project, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories donated $2 million, and SEL founder and President Ed Schweitzer and his wife, Beatriz, donated another $1 million to the project.
According to Charlette Kremer, director of LCSC’s Office of Grants & Contracts, the Sunderland Foundation is one of only a few organizations in the United States that provides grants for capital projects. In 2017, the Sunderland Foundation awarded more than $10 million in grants to higher education.
Kremer said she submitted LCSC’s request in September, which included floor plans, equipment lists, a detailed budget, and a description of the project and its goals. LCSC plans to use the money on the construction of the building.
“The Sunderland Foundation grant will help us construct this building, but it is far more than a simple construction project; it is a pathway for students in Idaho to truly connect learning to life,” said Todd Kilburn, LCSC vice president for Finance & Administration. “Although this certainly assists the college financially, this grant will have an even more significant impact on the students within our community who will have a clear path forward through their college education to find employment within local industry.”
Approved by the Idaho Legislature in March of 2017, LCSC’s new facility will be a regional CTE center, serving the needs of students from LCSC, neighboring Lewiston High School, and throughout the region. The 75,000 square-foot facility will house most of LCSC’s Technical & Industrial Division programs including auto mechanics technology; CNC machining technology; information technology; engineering technology; heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC-R) technology; and industrial electronics technology.