General Motors Company
/OVERVIEW: The General Motors Company changed its philanthropic strategy in 2017, shutting down its charitable foundation and setting up an in-house social investment program. The company’s areas of grantmaking interest include STEM education, work and opportunity, disaster relief, social justice, vehicle safety and the Detroit area.
IP TAKE: This is a surprisingly accessible corporate funder that conducts traditional grantmaking as well as strategic partnerships and signature programs. GM accepts letters of inquiry each year until September 30. GM is also a responsive funder for both grantseekers and grantees, as well as open-minded in its areas of giving.
PROFILE: The General Motors Company (GM), based in Detroit, conducts grantmaking through its corporate Social Investment program since unwinding its corporate foundation in 2017. The new philanthropic strategy aims to “create sustainable solutions that improve the communities in which we live and work around the world.” Areas of interest include STEM education, work and opportunity, disaster relief, social justice, vehicle safety and the greater Detroit area. Although a significant portion of General Motors’ philanthropy consists of signature programs conducted through partnerships with nationally known organizations and institutions, the company continues to make grants to smaller nonprofits and runs a separate organization, the GM Cancer Research Foundation, which is based in New York.
Grants for STEM Education
GM’s STEM funding focuses on developing the next generation of talent in STEM fields, prioritizing mentorship programs and underrepresented groups. Specific areas of interest include immersive learning experiences, the development of computational thought, artificial intelligence and “the digitization of education,” a term GM uses to refer to the use of “digital tools and resources” for both in-person and online education.
Grants for K-12 Education
K-12 STEM funding is mainly directed at national organizations that provide out-of-school or supplementary learning opportunities for elementary and secondary students. GM partnered with the Girl Scouts of the USA to develop a series of STEM exploration badges and worked with the Virginia-based nonprofit Ashoka to develop the STEM for Changemaking Challenge, a contest that asks students to use STEM skills to solve environmental problems or improve sustainability. In the summer of 2020, GM launched its signature STEM Summer School, in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Directed at families who might be stuck at home for the summer, the program provides free video instruction for hands-on projects in engineering via YouTube.
Grants for Higher Education
GM’s higher education STEM funding prioritizes programs that support STEM career development, diversity initiatives, student organizations and degree programs in design and manufacturing. Higher education recipients of STEM grants include the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, Pennsylvania State University, the University of Texas-Austin, Virginia Polytechnic Institute, the Cleveland Institute of Art and the National Society of Black Engineers, among others.
Grants for Work and Opportunity
General Motors names workforce readiness and economic prosperity as areas of focus for its community development funding. To these ends, GM created its signature Automotive Service Education Program, which is offered at more than 40 colleges and technical institutes across the U.S. and in Canada. The program offers instruction and apprenticeships that lead to an applied science degree. GM runs a similar program for the acquisition of skills leading to a Light Maintenance and Repair Certificate. Participating colleges include Sheridan Technical College in Florida, the Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology, New Mexico’s San Juan College and Suffolk County Community College in New York, among others.
Grants for Disease Research
The General Motors Cancer Research Foundation is separate from General Motors’ Social Investment program. Based in New York, this foundation awarded the Charles S. Mott Prize for Cancer Research each year from 1979 until 2005. While it no longer awards this prize, the foundation has, in recent years, given to nonprofits working in cancer research and cancer care. Recent grantees include the Bodman Foundation, the Virtue Foundation, the McDade Family Foundation and the Barbara and Donald Tober Foundation.
Grants for Humanitarian and Disasters Relief
GM has supported the rebuilding of homes after the 2017 hurricanes Irma and Maria. Grantees have included the American Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity.
Grants for Racial Justice and Equity
Since the murder of George Floyd and subsequent Black Lives Matter protests across the U.S., General Motors has given about $10 million to social rights organizations. The company has yet to outline an official funding initiative in this area, but details may be forthcoming in 2021.
Grants for the Greater Detroit Area
Although it ended many of its traditional grantmaking programs in 2017, GM continues to make grants to support education, sustainable employment, neighborhood revitalization and arts and culture in the Detroit area. Education funding focuses on third-grade reading proficiency, high school completion and teacher development. In the area of sustainable employment, the program has funded vocational training and job placement programs at the Detroit Hispanic Development Corp. and Focus: Hope. The Downtown Detroit Partnership has received ongoing support for its work improving parks, business districts, city-wide accessibility and safety. And in arts and culture, GM works broadly with organizations that offer community outreach and discount programs, including the Detroit institute of Arts, the Michigan Opera Theatre, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and the Charles Wright Museum African American History.
Other Grantmaking Opportunities
General Motors maintains a strong interest in promoting vehicle and road safety and runs educational and awareness programs addressing the dangers of distracted driving, the importance of seatbelt usage and other safe driving practices. Many of these in-house programs are directed at teens and young adults, for whom vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death. GM partnered with the nonprofit DoSomething to create its Not Safe for Wheels Driving Challenge, which aims to increase awareness of safe driving practices.
Important Grant Details:
Because much of its philanthropy consists of signature programs and strategic partnerships, it is difficult to ascertain an average grant size for this funder. Grants for Detroit organizations are generally awarded in amounts up to $500,000, with an average grant size of about $75,000. For additional information about General Motors’ philanthropic work, see the company’s Our Stories page.
General Motors accepts grant requests beginning with its online eligibility quiz. Eligible grantseekers are invited to submit letters of inquiry up until September 30 of each year and are notified within about six weeks if they have been selected to apply for funding. General Motors’ website features application guidelines and a submission guide. Inquiries may be directed to grantmaking staff via email.
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