WFW Awarded $500,000 from Haas for Scholarships
The Gene Haas Foundation awarded scholarship funds to allow its most deserving veteran students with stipends while they complete coursework and become certified machinist.
Posted: July 7, 2014
The Gene Haas Foundation awarded $500,000 in scholarship funds to Workshops for Warriors (San Diego, CA). The funds will allow Workshops for Warriors to provide its most deserving veteran students with stipends while they complete coursework to become certified machinists. The funds will be used as a challenge grant, and the inaugural class of recipients will be announced July 3 at a lunchtime ceremony. The foundation has contributed over $1 million to date to Workshops for Warriors.
Workshops for Warriors are a nonprofit that provides free training, certification, and job placement to U.S. military veterans. The company offers classes in welding, fabrication, machining, computer-aided design and manufacture, and machinery repair. Its graduates receive certifications from the American Welding Society and the National Institute of Metalworking Skills.
The school has a 100 percent job placement rate for its graduates, serving the dual purpose of providing a much-needed training pipeline for the U.S. manufacturing industry, while providing veterans with life-sustaining careers. Workshops for Warriors founder Hernan Luis y Prado was recently honored by President Obama as a White House Champion of Change for his organization’s successful model to help returning veterans.
Workshops for Warriors cannot yet accept GI bill funding, placing significant financial strain on enrolled veterans while they complete their coursework. The Gene Haas Foundation Machining for Warriors Scholarship will alleviate this burden for students. The inaugural class of nine scholarship recipients will receive their first disbursement at tomorrow’s ceremony.
Since its inception in 1999, the Gene Haas Foundation has awarded deserving charities more than $8.5 million in grants. Gene Haas is the founder of Haas Automation, manufacturers of industry-leading CNC machines and technology. The Gene Haas Foundation Machining for Warriors Scholarship unites the company’s leadership in the machine tool industry with its owner’s personal commitment to philanthropy.
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