Microsoft invests in local programs that benefit people of all ages. In North Carolina, our collaborations are organized by our focus areas of Skills for Jobs, Enabling Sustainability, and Empowering Communities.
The following program list contains a sample of the investments Microsoft makes on an annual basis.
Skills for jobs
Microsoft believes everyone should have access to the skills, technology, and opportunity they need to succeed in a changing economy.
The Catawba Valley Community College Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to supporting the vision and mission of Catawba Valley Community College (CVCC) in transforming our community while empowering our students. Catawba Valley Community College is supported by the state, but enhanced by the Catawba Valley Community College Foundation, which enables the institution to strive toward its greater potential.
- K64 Educational STEM grants support the local school systems in the communities of Hickory, Conover, and Catawba through the K64 organization.
- The Catawba Valley Community College Cyber and IT Infrastructure Project. The Cybersecurity Program focuses on meeting critical talent needs in the industry with a focus on cyber resiliency training for frontline healthcare workers across the state on how to continue operating a hospital when a cyber-attack shuts down the facility. The IT infrastructure upgrade is needed to replace outdated equipment at the college to support the faculty and students.
Enabling sustainability
Climate change requires swift, collective action and technological innovation. We are committed to meeting our own goals while helping communities to do the same.
Carolina Land & Lakes (CLL) serves as a bridge between local communities, federal and state agencies, and other stakeholders to preserve, protect, and provide responsible stewardship and utilization of local and environmental resources.
- The River Restoration Debris Blockage project supports the removal of debris blockages in the Henry Fork and Jacob Fork Rivers. Carolina Land and Lakes (CLL) commissioned a survey on the rivers that documented 65 debris blockages among both rivers and determined what was in each blockage.
In partnership with Catawba Lands Conservancy (CLC), Society for Ecological Restoration (SER) advances the science, practice, and policy of ecological restoration to sustain biodiversity, improve resilience in a changing climate, and re-establish an ecologically healthy relationship between nature and culture.
- The Mountain Creek Restoration project is a program of native planting and invasive removal within an 80-acre conserved area of Mountain Creek Park. With funding from Microsoft, CLC is reseeding the eroded banks with appropriate native grasses, which will create a broad complex of roots which will mitigate erosion and create a natural barrier against other pollutants that may reach the lake and increase the overall biodiversity of the park. Next, CLC will begin invasive removal across the 80-acre preserved area, CLC will plant native trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. This strategy serves a dual purpose of protecting the soil and providing competition against invasive plant seedlings. The selection of native vegetation will be based on the specific location and natural community.
Empowering communities
Microsoft is committed to strengthening communities and empowering the organizations that help them thrive. Whether affected by a recent emergency or decades of challenges, we use data, technology, and strategic investments to restore and support them for future generations.
Catawba Science Center is a 35,000 sq. ft. science technology museum whose purpose is to change lives and inspire learning through science and wonder.
- The AI Exhibit: Mind & Machine grant supports three projects at the Catawba Science Center. First, the exhibit on Artificial Intelligence: Your Mind & The Machine focuses on ChatGPT, Dall-E, Deep Learning, and more, allowing students to interact and learn how this new technology works. Second, the Portal to Science Scholarship supports summer fun science classes. Third, Partners in Science allows students from local schools to participate in school field trips to the science center for educational programs.
Eastern Catawba Cooperative Christian Ministry (ECCCM) provides emergency help for food, clothing, transportation, utilities, fuel oil, medicine, and rent/financial assistance.
- The Eastern Catawba Food Pantry supports the Catawba County community with food insecurity. This project supported the purchase of necessary grocery items to continue to provide for those in need.