The Gene Haas Foundation (GHF) donated $500,000 across 38 schools in 15 European countries for the creation of CNC scholarships in machining and manufacturing. The amount is a gift from Gene Haas, the founder of Haas Automation, and brings the total of donations by the GHF in Europe since 2015 to almost $1 million. The GHF funds are intended to support students and their parents in paying for tuition fees, and in 2016 the 38 successful schools received each a share of $407,445.
The beneficiaries are located in Belgium (10 schools), Bosnia, Croatia, France, Greece, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland (2 schools), Portugal, Spain (5 schools), Russia and Ukraine. The scholarships are administrated in collaboration with Haas Automation and the National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS), and are part of the Gene Haas ongoing engagement in supporting technical education, also supported by the several training programs offered by the Htec centers across the continent, aimed to ensure a reliable supply of well-trained employees for the European manufacturing industry.