Flathead Valley Community College recently received a $10,000 grant from the Weyerhaeuser Giving Fund in support of the college’s Laptops for Success program.
FVCC will purchase laptop computers to be used by students participating in the federally funded TRIO program.
Approximately 350 FVCC students currently participate in TRIO, a U.S. Department of Education program designed to provide support services for low-income students, first-generation college students and students with disabilities.
Lack of access to computers for coursework is frequently a major stumbling block for TRIO students, especially non-traditional students, displaced workers, single-parents, students working full-time and those who commute more than 20 miles to campus. Many of these students are juggling families and jobs in addition to their studies and as a result frequently find themselves needing to study at night and on weekends, when access to school computers is limited. Without reliable access to a computer, these students often struggle to meet academic requirements.
Thanks to the grant from the Weyerhaeuser Giving Fund, TRIO students at FVCC will be able to borrow laptop computers on a semester-by-semester basis.
“The grant from the Weyerhaeuser Giving Fund will provide laptops to over 30 TRIO students each semester, helping them complete coursework and bring them closer to achieving their academic goals,” said FVCC Learning Center Director Amber Paulson-Hofseth. “TRIO students and staff are very grateful for Weyerhaeuser’s generous support.”
Since 1948, the company’s philanthropy has directed more than $183 million to the communities where Weyerhaeuser employees work, live and play. Nationwide, the annual philanthropic budget totals $10 million.
Weyerhaeuser currently operates three mills in Montana: a lumber mill in Kalispell, a plywood mill in Kalispell and a medium-density fiberboard mill in Columbia Falls. There are currently more than 500 people employed by Weyerhaeuser in Montana.