LaGuardia Airport (LGA)’s Terminal B developer LaGuardia Gateway Partners (LGP), and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) have awarded STEM educational non-profit NYC FIRST, Inc. LGP’s first B-INSPIRED STEM Grant. With this grant, NYC FIRST will receive $15,000 to provide STEM and robotics programming at Queens-based robotics competitions as well as support two robotics teams at Queens high schools, the High School For Construction Trades, Engineering & Architecture and Jamaica Gateway to the Sciences. The grant follows the PANYNJ and other private partners’ previous initiatives to support STEM programming to students from the East Elmhurst and Corona neighborhoods adjacent to LGA through the Queens Public Library and the Cradle of Aviation Museum.
“We’re honored to award the first-ever B-INSPIRED grant to this incredible organization for its important work in extending opportunities to local Queens students interested in STEM,” said Suzette Noble, CEO of LaGuardia Gateway Partners. “We proudly launched this program to encourage innovation in our borough that is so important to our LaGuardia Terminal B community and are honored to grant NYC FIRST with new resources that will help support the next generation of scientists, engineers, builders, programmers, and more from our very own backyard.”
“The historic transformation of LaGuardia Airport from the nation’s worst to its best is also an opportunity to invest in students from communities around Queens to prepare them for careers in the aviation industry,” added Hersh Parekh, Port Authority deputy chief of intergovernmental affairs. “Since launching our $8-billion investment in a whole new LaGuardia Airport, the Port Authority has worked with its private partners, LGP and Delta Air Lines, to sponsor STEM programs for hundreds of local children. We thank LaGuardia Gateway Partners for continuing to make that investment in their home community of Queens.”
“For over a decade, NYC FIRST has proudly invested in STEM-based programs across Queens, bringing engaging, rigorous, and joyful robotics experiences to thousands of students in schools throughout the borough,” said Michael Zigman, CEO of NYC FIRST. “We are honored and thrilled to receive this recognition from LaGuardia Gateway Partners and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. This generous support will significantly expand our resources and allow us to broaden opportunities in this incredibly diverse borough, serving as a vital pathway for students to pursue STEM majors in college and access rewarding, high-growth careers in STEM fields.”
