If you live in Gwinnett or nearby, you’re lucky to call this place home. We’re surrounded by strong community leaders, excellent infrastructure, an award winning parks system and healthcare, business and educational institutions that all come together to deliver a great quality of life.
You may not realize that Gwinnett Technical College plays an incredibly important part in shaping that quality of life and the future leaders and workforce of our community. In fact, Wallethub recently named Gwinnett Tech the #1 Community and Technical College in Georgia and in the Top 5% in the U.S.!
By providing thousands of students with career-focused education and training for more than 30 years, Gwinnett Tech students are launching successful careers to reach their dreams. In fact, 2,400 students graduated last year and 99% of them became employed.
My company, Holtkamp Heating & Air, has been a longtime provider of scholarships to Gwinnett Tech students in the Heating and Air Conditioning Technician program (HVAC). Now that I’ve also served as a Gwinnett Tech board member for several years, I’ve been amazed to see the wide-ranging areas and important roles of the College’s graduates throughout our community.
You might be surprised how often you interact with Gwinnett Tech Alumni:
- When you visit a doctor or hospital, your caring nurse may be a graduate.
- The specialist at your accountant’s office may have received their degree from Gwinnett Tech.
- The HVAC technician who provides your family with comfort may have been certified by the school.
- The welder who is helping to construct the next iconic building in our community may have received their training from Gwinnett Tech’s welding program.
From Accounting and Criminal Justice to Welding and everything in between, Gwinnett Tech offers more than 140 degree, diploma and certificate programs.
The Challenge:
One critical area of need is a structured way of better connecting Gwinnett Tech students seeking internships and work-based learning with employers looking for skilled, well-trained employees.
The Opportunity:
Gwinnett Tech is creating a one-stop resource for work-based learning and career development – a Center for Student Internships and Entrepreneurship Excellence – which will connect students with employers and help employers build a robust workforce pipeline.
Creating this internship and work-based learning system to serve thousands of students is a very expensive undertaking. To move this project forward, the Strickland family of Metro Waterproofing has pledged to match total donations up to $250,000 received by the Gwinnett Tech Foundation.
Additionally, to show my support for Gwinnett Tech and this internship program, I will also personally match every dollar donated by Holtkamp Heating & Air customers, my colleagues and friends up to $10,000.
This match means that 100% of every dollar you donate by Saturday, December 31, will be matched by three additional dollars! For example, your $1,000 gift will be matched by me, and that $2,000 will be matched by Clyde and Sandra Strickland. Your gift then becomes a $4,000 investment!
Not only will your generosity make a difference to students working toward their career dreams, since Gwinnett Tech Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization, your gift is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Please, during this Giving Season, donate what you can and help Gwinnett Tech continue providing a world class education for future generations.
Whether your gift is $5, $50 or $500, any gift makes a difference to the very students, who in turn, support our community!
