BC&E Foundation awards $25,000 in grants
After a successful fundraising year, the Building Congress & Exchange Foundation recently awarded grants totaling $25,046 to 10 local organizations involved in construction workforce development.
“This is the highest amount of grant money we have given out in at least six years,” said Curtis Dalsimer, who served as Foundation President last year.
The heightened awards were due partly to the Foundation’s decision to hold a fundraising bull roast instead of a gala — a change that generated higher revenue. The Foundation also opted to channel 100 percent of all direct donations to grants, Dalsimer said.
That funding set the stage to be able to provide financial assistance to all 10 applicants.
“All the grant applications met our requirement that the organizations were helping to grow the future construction workforce in the greater Baltimore area, so it was a pretty exciting time for everybody to be able to approve all the applications that we got,” Dalsimer said.
Those awards included grants to two new recipients. Milford Mill Academy received $2,000 to cover some materials costs for its three-year Building and Construction Technology (BCT) program.
The Job Opportunity Task Force received $4,000 to help offset its costs. The program provides low-income workers with basic training in electrical, mechanical, plumbing and carpentry skills. It also provides participants with an OSHA 10-hour course, basic computer training, and any needed helped with transportation, literacy training or legal aid.
Eight previous recipients of BC&E Foundation grants were also awarded funds. They include:
• Project Jumpstart – $2,348
• Kennedy Krieger Institute – $3,748
• Habitat for Humanity, Susquehanna – $2,500
• Carroll County Tech, Welding Program – $1,750
• Carroll County Tech, Masonry Program – $1,400
• Carroll County Tech, HVAC Program – $2,300
• ACE Mentor Program, Baltimore – $2,500
• ACE Mentor Program, Annapolis – $2,500
Dalsimer said the grants will help schools afford more materials (especially in the face of rising prices) and provide students with more hands-on training. The grants will also help provide high school graduates pursuing construction careers with scholarships to advance their education, support skills training and entry level jobs for young adults, and enable some students to learn about advanced construction technology, specifically 3D printing for construction.