Exelon Foundation Launches First-Ever Hybrid STEM Leadership Academy

Academy encourages high school girls in Chicago, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., to pursue career paths in STEM-related fields

The Exelon Foundation, in collaboration with Exelon Corp., a Fortune 100 company and the nation’s largest generator of carbon-free energy, has announced the return of its annual STEM Leadership Academy, which was launched in 2018 to encourage female students to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).

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The Exelon Foundation hosts the STEM Academy events in cities where Exelon has operating companies. The 2021 iteration of the Academy will be held for 180 students in Chicago (July 11-16), Philadelphia (July 25-30) and Washington D.C./Baltimore (August 1-6).

Amid easing pandemic restrictions, Academy participants will gather masked and in person for the first day of each Academy. All participants will return to a virtual format for the remainder of each Academy, which will examine issues relating to climate change.

“It is critical that we engage, educate and inspire the next generation of STEM leaders and provide them the tools and resources they need to prepare for future professional careers,” said Chris Crane, Exelon President and CEO. “The STEM Academy provides female students with access to STEM leaders, first-hand experiences and learning opportunities that they may not otherwise encounter in their academic careers. As the pandemic winds down, we are taking an innovative hybrid approach that will provide these young women with an exciting STEM experience this summer.”

As part of the three week-long Academy events, 60 high school girls in each market will gather on the first day of the Academy to pick up tools and needed supplies for experiments during the week, and then participate in online educational seminars, discussions and hands-on workshops on the remaining days. Attendees also will take virtual field trips to noteworthy STEM-related landmarks in each host city. This year’s Academy event will place a special focus on addressing the growing impacts of climate change and the disproportionate ways it is affecting the most under-resourced populations. Students will be challenged to design their own energy-efficient product prototypes, with a panel of judges selecting a winning project at the conclusion of each Academy.

The fourth annual STEM Leadership Academy, funded by the Exelon Foundation, is part of Exelon’s investment to encourage and support the involvement of young women in STEM. The company recently committed $1 million to launch the STEM Leadership Academy Scholarship, which is open to Academy alumna. It covers all costs associated with college, including tuition, room and board and other expenses not covered by other confirmed scholarships, family contributions and work-study grants. Crane recently presented the scholarships to seven students, who will graduate debt-free and will be guaranteed internships with Exelon throughout college.

Beyond the STEM Leadership Academy, Exelon contributed $11.3 million to education-related causes in 2020. Additionally, 84 percent of Exelon’s philanthropic funding last year supported programs and initiatives focused on diversity, equity and inclusion.

Exelon is proud to partner with The NEED Project on the STEM Leadership Academy.

To learn more about Exelon’s initiatives to invest in the communities it serves, click here.

About Exelon

Exelon Corporation (Nasdaq: EXC) is a Fortune 100 energy company with the largest number of electricity and natural gas customers in the U.S. Exelon does business in 48 states, the District of Columbia and Canada and had 2020 revenue of $33 billion. Exelon serves approximately 10 million customers in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania through its Atlantic City Electric, BGE, ComEd, Delmarva Power, PECO and Pepco subsidiaries. Exelon is one of the largest competitive U.S. power generators, with more than 31,000 megawatts of nuclear, gas, wind, solar and hydroelectric generating capacity comprising one of the nation’s cleanest and lowest-cost power generation fleets. The company’s Constellation business unit provides energy products and services to approximately 2 million residential, public sector and business customers, including three fourths of the Fortune 100. Follow Exelon on Twitter @Exelon.

About the Exelon Foundation

The Exelon Foundation is an independent, nonprofit organization funded solely by Exelon Corporation through shareholder dollars. The mission of the Foundation is to encourage respect for the environment, support innovative STEM education programs and strengthen the social and economic fabric of the community by providing a match to Exelon employee contributions.

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