GM Canada has launched a $1.8 million fund dedicated to supporting educational programs for educational programs in STEM for young people.
The fund will focus on supporting national partnerships and initiatives introducing elementary and high school students to STEM, with an emphasis on outreach to young girls. The fund will enable young researchers to complete their education through a new series of scholarships at universities. The first of these scholarships will be at the University of Waterloo, where it will create the GM Canada Innovators Award for students pursing graduate work in engineering.
“GM’s commitment to diversity in innovation by expanding their STEM program for young Canadian women, will inspire the next generation of astronauts, engineers, doctors and even video game developers,” said Navdeep Bains, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development. “GM is helping ensure that Canadian youth have the digital skills for the jobs of the future. Congratulations to the company on the official opening of their new Mobility Software Tech centre. Proof once more that Canada is truly leading when it comes to the ‘car of the future’.”
GM Canada also plans to engage the wider innovation ecosystem across Canada with new university partnerships. Its most recent is a partnership with the Creative Destruction Lab at the University of Toronto.
GM Canada made the announcement at the unveiling of their new technical centre, CTC Markham, earlier this month. The centre will focus on software development and innovation in vehicles, in-car infotainment systems, and software and controls related to self-driving vehicles.
“CTC Markham represents a new kind of GM workplace, centred on collaboration, open design, and creativity,” said Brian Tossan, director of GM’s Canadian Technical Centre. “GM Canada is at the forefront of reinventing mobility right here in Markham. We are helping develop software and systems that will enable us to save lives, reduce emissions and create smarter and better ways to travel, work and play. We’ve had a great year of growing our workforce, and we’re not done yet; we are still actively recruiting several hundred engineers and software developers to help us achieve our vision.”