GE Foundation

Volunteer Working with School Children

A Commitment to Educational Opportunity

For more than 50 years, the GE Foundation has invested in programs based on a fundamental premise: a quality education ushers in a lifetime of opportunity, which helps build a strong and diverse workforce and citizenry. Today, the need for a quality education has never been more urgent, especially for individuals from under-represented and disadvantaged backgrounds. We continue to address this societal and economic imperative by supporting high-impact initiatives that improve the access, equity and quality of public education in GE communities around the world.

Highlights & Recognition

Boy doing math

Opening Doors

In honor of Corporate Philanthropy Day, GE reaffirms its commitment to improve the communities in which it works and lives. GE's ability to positively impact the communities in which we work and live is the ultimate measure of being a "good and great" company.

College Bound students

Developing Futures Program

The GE Foundation has launched a $100 million investment to improve student achievement and increase college-readiness across targeted school districts. Louisville, Kentucky's Jefferson County Public Schools, the Stamford (CT) Public Schools, the Cincinnati (OH) Public Schools, the School District of the City of Erie (PA), and Atlanta Public Schools (GA) are the first districts to benefit from this unique approach to educational systemic change.

Students

Entrepreneurship and Employment Training for Youth in Indonesia

Global Education Partnership received a $575,000 from the GE Foundation to expand an initiative aimed at fostering economic self-sufficiency among low-income youth

Students

Rebuilding Efforts in South Asia

The GE family remains committed to long-term recovery efforts focused on re-building the lives and communities of the tsunami survivors.

 

News & Trends

The GE Foundation's education initiatives seek to address some sobering statistics:

  • In the U.S., only 67 out of every 100 students will graduate from high school on time, and only 18 will end up graduating from college.
  • In China, 71% of the country's illiterate population is female.
  • In India, 40% of 1st grade students drop out by the 5th grade.
  • In Mexico, 90% of students who start school will not get to college.

Effective Math & Science Instruction

What do we know? Seeking Effective Math & Science Instruction (PDF, 308 KB), published by the Urban Institute, identifies curricula and professional development models with evidence of effectiveness in increasing student achievement. The GE Foundation commissioned the study to inform its efforts to achieve sustainable academic improvement for underrepresented and disadvantaged students. A summary (PDF, 163 KB) is also available.

NACAC logo

2006 Marks Record College Attendance...But Racial Gap Still Major Issue

Last October, the American Council on Education issued its twenty-second annual report, “Minorities in Higher Education”. More than 16 million students were enrolled in post-secondary education in the U.S., an all-time high. However, the gap between white vs. black and Hispanic students is largest at 4-year colleges, where blacks and Hispanics constitute only 18% of the undergraduate population, even though they account for 32% of the national college-age population.