Nissan Gives Back to the Kids

Besides being a leader in the automotive industry, Nissan is also a leader in giving back to the community. The Nissan Foundation recently gave to grants 7 Middle Tennessee nonprofits, one of them The Discovery Center of Murfreesboro.

OF the 27 recipients of The Nissan Foundation, 7 being in Tennessee, the Children’s Museum Corporation of Rutherford County on behalf of the Discovery Center, was awarded $55,000 of Nissan’s $205,000 donations.

 

“The organizations and projects selected for 2016 represent those who provide culturally diverse and relevant programs in communities where Nissan operates” - Scott Becker, President Nissan Foundation.

The Nissan Foundation was founded in 1992 after three weeks of violent civil unrest occurred near the headquarters for Nissan’s U.S. sales operations, then in Southern California. The foundation was created as a response to a societal need that still affects communities today — supporting local organizations that promote the value of cultural diversity in American society and foster greater social and racial equality.

Discovery Center CEO Tara McDougall said the award for the hands-on children’s museum will support its “Kids First” initiative. She explained Kids First is an outreach initiative designed to help children access the museum on Broad Street in Murfreesboro.

Other grants will fund 27 projects, including the Oasis Center “Building Bridges” program, which serves 300 Nashville youths annually with anti-discrimination/anti-violence programming at schools, and the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants' “Neighbor-to-Neighbor Project,” which provides school programs, employer training and workshops on social services for Iraqi immigrants in Detroit.

The Nissan Foundation has awarded more than $9.3 million to date.