Erie Insurance Giving Network now accepting applications for 2022 Investing in Our Future grants

ERIE, Pa., August 12, 2021- The Erie Insurance Giving Networktoday announced a $305,000 grant investment to support eight nonprofits serving students in the city of Erie, Pennsylvania.

The funding is part of Erie Insurance's newly established "Investing In Our Future" competitive educational grants initiative, focused on strengthening the alignment between instructional programming and out-of-school time activities and supporting early childhood education.

The grant recipients include Erie Arts & Culture, Erie Philharmonic, Erie Police Athletic League, Gannon University, YMCA of Greater Erie, expERIEnce Children's Museum, Erie Playhouse and Child Development Centers, Inc. Individual project grants ranged from $25,000 to $55,000.

"For more than 95 years, Erie Insurance (ERIE) has been committed to our hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania," said Ann Scott, community outreach manager for Erie Insurance. "We are pleased to be able to enhance our support of the nonprofit organizations that are doing important work in our community and help make progress on our shared goal of reducing poverty through education."

According to Scott, ERIE's Charitable Giving Committee was impressed by the creativity of the grant submissions and encouraged by the anticipated impacts these programs will have on young people in the city:

• Child Development Centers, Inc.plans to enhance its literacy and school readiness programs for nearly 700 preschool students enrolled at four development centers across the city.
  
• Erie Arts & Cultureplans to provide students in Erie's Public Schools (EPS) with an arts-in-education opportunity through before or after school programming. Teachers will lead students through arts-based activities in the visual and performing arts.
• Erie Philharmonicwill create a program through which selected students from EPS elementary schools will receive loaner instruments and scholarships for music instruction through the Erie Junior Philharmonic.
• The Erie Playhouse seeks to continue and expand their PLAYtime program, which uses Imagination Library and diversity, equity and inclusion stories to build literacy in a safe and welcoming space.
• The Erie Police Athletic League, which strengthens relationships between at-risk youth and law enforcement, plans to expand the number of participating students and offer additional events and field trips.
• The expERIEnce Children's Museum will offer its "Wee Engineers" program to pre-K classrooms and the museum's "Science Explorers" program for first grade students in EPS.
  
• Gannon Universitywill expand its STEM education (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) programming for middle school students in EPS during the school year and also pilot a STEM summer camp.
• The YMCA of Greater Erie plans to offer its "DiscoverY" program to students at Pfeiffer Burleigh Elementary School, with a focus on emotional learning, STEM, arts and music. Erie Insurance has partnered with Pfeiffer Burleigh for nearly 35 years and is the Community School Corporate Partner for the school.
  

To learn more about ERIE's "Investing In Our Future" grant program, visit www.erieinsurance.com/givingnetwork/investinginourfuture