A Madison-based nonprofit called Maydm plans to ramp up growth after being selected for a five-year, $500,000 grant award.
The organization aims to support girls and youth of color in 6th grade through high school as they pursue education in STEM fields, offering workshops, summer programs and paid internships.
Maydm recently announced it’s getting a $500,000 grant from the American Family Institute for Social and Corporate Impact, with the first $100,000 coming this year. These dollars will be used for staff and intern pay, funding the internship program itself, as well as related programming on resume development, interviewing, workplace behavior and team building, and financial literacy.
That’s according to Executive Director Christina Outlay, who says the support will also help the program expand beyond Madison and Dane County to Milwaukee and Rock County.
“Major multi-year funding like this enables us to support our youth for several years, from skill building to internship training and placement, through graduation,” she said in an email.
Interns this year earned $18 per hour, she noted, adding that rate is expected to increase each year. When smaller or nonprofit host companies can’t pay that much, Maydm makes up the difference while funds are available.
The program had 12 interns at six companies in 2021. This year, 24 interns were working at 10 companies — and Outlay wants to continue that trend in the coming year. She said the program aims to place 35 interns at more than 10 companies in 2024, with a “stretch goal” of 48 interns working at 15 companies.
Outlay said Maydme is seeking new corporate partners to continue expanding the internship program in the greater Madison area and “potentially into the Milwaukee area” for summer 2024.
“Through partnerships with other organizations and our own programs, we can provide talented, diverse young talent to work in science, technology, AND engineering internships,” she said. “We just need more companies to join our program and provide the opportunities.”
Previous intern hosts include Exact Sciences, Fetch Rewards, Madison Gas and Electric, Promega, Phoenix and others.
The group’s website features a number of student projects, including smartphone applications, websites, simple video games and more.
See more on the program: https://www.maydm.org/our-impact
