GM Foundation Gives $70,000 to Carnegie Mellon University

Grant builds on more than 30 years of General Motors and GM Foundation's support

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Feb 10, 2011, 12:00 ET

PITTSBURGH, Feb. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The General Motors Foundation today announced a $70,000 donation to Carnegie Mellon University, a collaborator with GM and the Foundation on award-winning autonomous driving projects.

GM Executive Director of Research and Development Walt Dorfstatter made the award on behalf of the Foundation at the Pittsburgh Auto Show. GM's partnership with Carnegie Mellon dates to 1977.

"Our support of Carnegie Mellon is guided by the belief that investment in science and technology education will help shape the automotive future and strengthen the nation's global competitiveness,'' Dorfstatter said. "Automotive companies are making great strides in developing and adopting new technologies and Carnegie Mellon's exceptional programs foster a new generation of talent that can significantly accelerate the pace of automotive innovation.''

Since 2000, GM, the Foundation and Carnegie Mellon University have collaborated on the next generation of vehicle information technology and autonomous driving. Working together, they won the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge, a 60-mile course navigated by a Chevrolet Tahoe without a driver.

"Our long-standing collaboration with GM and the GM Foundation is an important part of Carnegie Mellon's focus as we strive to provide skilled leaders and innovators so critical to helping the nation remain competitive in an ever-changing global environment,'' said Ed Schlesinger, head of Carnegie Mellon's Electrical and Computer Engineering Department.

The grant will be used to fund graduate student fellowships, undergraduate scholarships and student organizations at Carnegie Mellon University.

The GM Foundation has provided more than $26 million since 2005 to support education initiatives in engineering, manufacturing, design and business across the country.

About the GM Foundation:

Since its inception in 1976, the GM Foundation has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to deserving American charities, educational organizations and to disaster relief efforts worldwide. The GM Foundation focuses on supporting Education, Health and Human Services, Environment and Energy and Community Development initiatives, mainly in the communities where GM operates. Funding of the GM Foundation comes solely from GM. The last contribution to the GM Foundation was made in 2001.

About Carnegie Mellon University: Carnegie Mellon is a private, internationally ranked research university with programs in areas ranging from science, technology and business, to public policy, the humanities and the arts. More than 11,000 students in the university's seven schools and colleges benefit from a small student-to-faculty ratio and an education characterized by its focus on creating and implementing solutions for real problems, interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation. A global university, Carnegie Mellon's main campus in the United States is in Pittsburgh, Pa. It has campuses in California's Silicon Valley and Qatar, and programs in Asia, Australia, Europe and Mexico. The university is in the midst of a $1 billion fundraising campaign, titled "Inspire Innovation: The Campaign for Carnegie Mellon University," which aims to build its endowment, support faculty, students and innovative research, and enhance the physical campus with equipment and facility improvements.