Northrop Grumman Corporation (NOC) has awarded grants worth $1,800 to support science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educational programs in Salt Lake City metropolitan area schools.
Northrop Grumman awarded six individual grants of $300 each to teachers in local elementary and middle schools to fund projects that promote STEM education and awareness. Any public or charter school with an open enrollment policy in the country is eligible. Private schools with an associated 501(c)(3) are also eligible. Selection was based upon the proposed activity’s potential to engage students and the level of STEM focus.

The grant program, which is in its third year, was announced in recognition of National Engineers Week in mid-February and winners were notified in April. The following teachers received the Northrop Grumman National Engineers Week STEM grants:

– Jeff Bryant Rose Springs Elementary School (Stansbury Park)
– Heidi Ceballos Valley Crest Elementary School (West Valley City)
– Brad Hendershot Excelsior Academy (Erda)
– Richard Johnson Beacon Heights Elementary School (Salt Lake City)
– Natalie Kowallis Rose Springs Elementary School (Stansbury Park)
– Megan Madsen Neil Armstrong Academy (West Valley City)

“Northrop Grumman is a strong advocate of STEM education and recognizes its influence, especially in early school years, on technical career choices," said Jim Lupica, director of manufacturing and the lead campus executive for Northrop Grumman’s Salt Lake City facility. “We applaud these teachers for creating innovative, engaging projects to bring STEM concepts to life for students.”

The selected teachers’ proposed STEM-related classroom projects include designing and building model rockets to teach students about aerodynamics and kinetic energy, and learning about weather and climate through a weather station and greenhouse. Grants must be used in the current calendar year to purchase equipment, supplies, publications or transportation related to the proposed STEM project.

Northrop Grumman is an ongoing contributor to STEM education. The Northrop Grumman Engineering Scholars program provides academic-based scholarships to promising high school seniors who plan to pursue a career in engineering, computer science, physics or math. Additionally, the company sponsors the annual High School Involvement Partnership program, which offers high school students hands-on job training and mentoring from Northrop Grumman employees.

Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in unmanned systems, cyber, C4ISR, and logistics and modernization to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit www.northropgrumman.com for more information.

Photos accompanying this release are available at: http://media.globenewswire.com/noc/mediagallery.html?pkgid=25802