On March 8, 2019, the Versacare Foundation awarded $1,159,000 in grant funding to Adventist education, including $920,000 to 118 primary and secondary schools across the United States and Canada in support of STEM education (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math).
The STEM grant program is open to every North American Division (NAD) conference- or church-sponsored primary or secondary school and provides funding in three categories:
• $5,000 for smaller schools of three classrooms or less
• $10,000 for larger schools of four or more classrooms and 12-year schools
• $10,000 for senior academies
STEM funds can be put toward many uses, such as purchasing classroom smart boards, tablets or Chromebooks for student use; equipping or updating student computer labs; installing 3D printers and related software; initiating or funding robotics programs; instruction in software coding; and equipping chemistry, physics, and biology labs.
Versacare Inc. is the largest independent private foundation supporting the varied ministries of the Seventh-day Adventist Church with grant funding. A self-funded lay organization, it is made up of both lay Adventists and present and former Adventist Church employees. It awarded its first grants in 1990, totalling $26,000, to five different Adventist ministries. Since then, it has awarded nearly 1,200 grants totalling over $26 million. This is Versacare’s fourth successive year funding STEM grants. To date, Versacare has provided 228 schools with a total of $1,825,000.
This year 10 Adventist schools in four Canadian conferences received Versacare funding totalling $85,000.
Alberta Conference
South Side Christian School: $5,000
Peace Hills Adventist School: $5,000
College Heights Christian School: $10,000 Prairie Adventist Christian eSchool: $10,000 Chinook Winds Adventist Academy: $10,000
British Columbia Conference Lakeview Christian School: $10,000 Okanagan Christian School: $10,000 Pleasant Valley Christian Academy: $5,000
Manitoba-Saskatchewan Conference Red River Valley Jr. Academy: $10,000
Maritime Conference Sandy Lake Academy: $10,000
The SDACC Office of Education deeply appreciates what Versacare has done and continues to do to support Adventist education across the North American Division.
For more information about Versacare’s STEM grant program and how schools can apply, please visit www.versacare.org.