General Motors employs thousands of engineers, scientists, technologists, and designers who together create the foundation of the U.S. automotive industry’s market-leading vehicle portfolio. But the reality is that demand for technically adept workers considerably exceeds the supply. And the need for talent in the STEAM trades — science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics – will only accelerate from here.
GM is proud to support National STEM (and STEAM) Day, observed this year on November 8. Our investment in education and workplace development is an ongoing and crucial element of our strategy for attracting the best and brightest. In 1923, GM acquired what was then called the School of Automobile Trades, renaming it the General Motors Institute (now Kettering University), an engineering school that counts GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra among its alumni. Our commitment to supporting engineering and science education has never faltered.
Since 2021, GM has provided over $110 million to programs that advance technology education in secondary schools, trade schools, employee training programs, community colleges, and universities. Those philanthropic grants include nearly $44 million for early career exposure, and $25 million for career training programs.
The goal of those investments is to pique the interest of even the youngest students in tech-related fields. GM’s future – and the ability of the American economy to compete on the world stage — hinges on expanding the pool of homegrown experts in engineering and other technical fields. GM’s investments in STEAM education are targeted at closing the skilled trades gap and prepping workers for an increasingly tech-driven future.
For current GM employees, we’re investing in a variety of initiatives to help them take ownership of their career advancement through resources like our Technical Learning University that upskills more than 2,500 employees per year in advanced manufacturing, electrification, and emerging tech.
“The TLU instruction strengthened my skills as a new engineer,” said Tarek Kaafarani, senior execution engineer at GM’s Orion, MI Assembly Plant. “It was a very good experience for me because it applied to my daily job responsibilities in propulsion system robotics and automation. The training also exposed me to other applications outside of my job scope that broadened my understanding.”
Longer term, Kaafarani aspires to earn an engineering leadership position. In preparation, he plans to seek training in areas such as operational excellence, program management, and other subjects aimed at developing leadership skills.
Together, GM’s technical and design wizards have established a lengthy record of innovation. GM remains among the top 50 companies in the world ranked by patents awarded. We built the first automatic transmission, the first electric starter, and the first mass-produced electric vehicle. We played pioneering roles in the development of airbags, child safety seats, anti-lock brakes, crash-test dummies, and catalytic converters. And there is more to come, much more, with our teams hard at work on autonomous driving, artificial intelligence, robotics, software-defined vehicles, and more.
“At GM, we believe that investing in STEAM education is essential for building stronger communities and preparing young people for the jobs of tomorrow,” said Dave Massaron, vice president, corporate citizenship. “By partnering with organizations that share our vision, we’re helping students discover their potential and pursue rewarding careers in science, technology, engineering, the arts, and math.”
With STEM jobs projected to grow four times faster than non-STEM roles, the need for more progress on STEAM education is clear, and the urgency is high. One of the goals of National STEM /STEAM Day is to ignite interest and confidence in students when they are still in their formative years. Alarmingly, data shows that fourth grade science, math, and reading scores have been declining nationwide since 2021. GM is taking a multi-pronged approach to help address this critical issue:
- Our nonprofit partners have helped expose more than 300,000 students to STEAM careers this year.
- Last year, we provided grants that enabled more than 6,000 people to enroll in STEAM-related career training programs.
- Likewise, we provided grants that helped more than 463,000 students engage in STEAM career exploration activities, while other programs increased awareness of STEAM-related career options for nearly 1 million students.
- GM is partnering with First Book to provide books to K-12 students participating in the Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Summer Brain Gain program.
- General Motors Corporate Giving provides funding for the EmployED program managed by the American Association of Community Colleges, which seeks to align community colleges with advanced manufacturing industry needs
- To mark this year’s National STEM Day, GM employees will participate in a range of workshops, robotics events and other programming in and around Detroit, like high school career panels, middle school robotics competitions and science events for fourth-graders.
The future is coming, and STEM and STEAM skills will be at the heart of it all. Now is the right time to invest in the future – and the next generation of workers.