By Hazel Scott/ASU
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama (HMMA) presented Alabama State University with
a check for $50,000 on Feb. 21, in conjunction with the company’s celebration of the
start of production of its electrified Genesis GV70 in Montgomery. The news conference
and presentation were held at the Hyundai site.
National, state and city dignitaries were in attendance, along with ASU representatives,
including Dr. Joyce Loyd-Davis, senior director of Health Services; Col. (ret.) Gregory
Clark, vice president of Institutional Advancement; Dr. Audrey Napier, associate professor
of biology; Dr. Carl S. Pettis, provost and vice president of Academic Affairs; and
Dr. Michelle Foster, associate dean of the College of Science, Technology, Engineering
and Mathematics (C-STEM).
During a special presentation at the end of the program, Brandon Ramirez, director
of Corporate Responsibility and External Relations for Genesis, awarded ASU with a
$50,000 check to support STEM scholarships as part of its “Genesis Gives” initiative,
which supports STEM education and sports programming.
“With this donation, we look forward to seeing future Alabama State University grads
joining the HMMA team,” Ramirez said.
The University was acknowledged for its positive partnership with Hyundai and for
its two-day COVID-19 vaccination clinic where ASU’s Health Services team inoculated
more than 1,000 HMMA employees with the COVID-19 vaccine, under the leadership of Davis.
Clark offered remarks on behalf of the University.
“This is a great day for Alabama State University. On behalf of President Quinton T. Ross, Jr. and the Board of Trustees, we would like to thank you for what you do to support Alabama State and for being a partner with the University," Clark said. "These dollars will immediately go to help our brand new engineering program that is expected to start in the fall of 2024. So, in a couple of years, we will be able to send you interns (to HMMA) and in about four years, we will send some graduates to Hyundai to keep these young men and women in the state of Alabama working…We are happy to be proud partners with Hyundai,” Clark concluded.