Grant from Pacific Power Foundation Improves Access for First-Generation Engineers

Pacific Power Foundation presents $7,500 scholarship-directed grant

First generation students at Oregon Tech who are interested in engineering are now one step closer to achieving their educational goals, thanks to a $7,500 scholarship-directed grant from the Pacific Power Foundation.

Funds were presented to the Oregon Tech Foundation in July 2018 in support of scholarships to help first-generation undergraduate engineering students manage college costs. In total, the Oregon Tech Foundation awarded 266 scholarships totaling more than $650,000 for the 2017-18 academic year, and this year’s donation from the Pacific Power Foundation is a strong contribution toward efforts to exceed that goal.

“Pacific Power is an avid supporter of Oregon Tech and the education it provides,” said Todd Andres, regional business manager for Pacific Power in Klamath Falls. “We have teamed up with the university on many different projects and are excited to enhance that relationship by helping engineering students achieve their college dreams.”

With this year’s contribution, 13 first generation engineering students have directly benefited from the generosity of the Pacific Power Foundation scholarship support since 2012.

The Pacific Power Foundation is part of the PacifiCorp Foundation, one of the largest utility-endowed foundations in the United States. The foundation was created in 1988 by PacifiCorp, an electric utility serving 1.9 million customers in six Western states as Pacific Power (Oregon, Washington and California) and Rocky Mountain Power (Utah, Wyoming and Idaho). The foundation’s mission, through charitable investments, is to support the growth and vitality of the communities served by Pacific Power and Rocky Mountain Power.

To learn more about how you can help support students at Oregon Tech, contact Tracy Ricketts, associate vice president for Development and Alumni Relations at 541-885-1118 or Tracy.Ricketts@oit.edu.

About the Oregon Tech Foundation

The Oregon Tech Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization that promotes and funds the educational, cultural, charitable, and service functions of the Oregon Institute of Technology.

Press release provided from the Oregon Institute of Technology.