The West Georgia Technical College Foundation has received a grant for $140,000 from Goodwill Southern Rivers (Goodwill) in support of gap funding for WGTC students with unmet financial needs.
Goodwill Southern Rivers (Goodwill) recently announced that it is investing $1 million in technical education across its 50-county service delivery area. The award was divided equally amongst seven regional technical and community colleges within its territory, including West Georgia Tech.
“We welcome and sincerely appreciate financial support for students that gives them the means to remain enrolled and become successful in obtaining the education necessary for a great career,” WGTC President Dr. Julie Post said.
The introduction of the technical college gap grants is one of the first initiatives implemented as a result of the $10 million donation Goodwill received from novelist and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott.
According to Goodwill President and CEO Jack Warden, the initiative is designed to bridge the gap between existing scholarships and grants and the actual cost of tuition.
“There are several grants and scholarships out there, but in some instances, they fall short of the actual cost of the program, Warden said. “Oftentimes this is just a few hundred dollars, but that can be a huge barrier to someone trying to get an education to start their career.”
WGTC Foundation Executive Director Brittney Henderson is thrilled to partner with Goodwill Southern Rivers and is grateful for the grant and what it will mean for WGTC students.
“These funds will not only greatly impact our students now, but they will also be endowed to help students for many years to come,” Henderson said.
The Foundation will use $40,000 of the grant to establish the Goodwill Gap Fund Scholarship. This scholarship will be available to students beginning in the summer semester of 2022. The remaining $100,000 of the donation will be placed in an endowment for future use per donor request.
“On behalf of the Board of Trustees of the West Georgia Technical College Foundation, we are grateful for the generosity of Goodwill and for the partnership we have developed,” WGTC Foundation President Greg Wright said. “This contribution will help West Georgia Tech students get the training they need to be successful. It is through partnerships like this that we can truly impact the communities we serve.”
West Georgia Technical College, with campuses in Carroll, Coweta, Douglas, Haralson and Troup counties and class sites in Heard and Meriwether counties, offers more than 140 associate degree, diploma and technical certificate programs of study. A unit of the Technical College System of Georgia, West Georgia Tech is one of the largest of the state’s 22 technical colleges. For more information, please visit westgatech.edu.
Goodwill Industries of the Southern Rivers (GoodwillSR) is one of 156 independent, community-based Goodwill nonprofits across the United States and Canada. Headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, GoodwillSR serves 50 counties throughout east Alabama and west Georgia. We provide employment readiness training, computer access, educational assistance, skills workshops and more to spur job placement and economic stability in the communities we serve. We can provide these and other programs thanks to the continued donations of giving patrons. We use the revenue generated in GoodwillSR stores to fund the majority of our community services. For more information about Goodwill Industries of the Southern Rivers, visit www.goodwillsr.org.
