Rising to Meet the Challenge of our Mission

In these most trying of times, we’re thankful to be in a position to make a positive impact. Our mission is to develop science and technology for the good of society, and to use a portion of our earnings to invest in communities where our employees live and work.

Mindful of that mission, we look back at several of this year’s gifts that were made to support specific needs from 2020.

As the coronavirus pandemic escalated, we dedicated financial support to help ensure food, shelter and safety for those most in need. In March, we donated $50,000 allotments to five agencies: the Mid-Ohio Food Bank, serving Central Ohio, the Capital Area Food Bank, serving the Washington DC metro area, Community Food Bank of New Jersey, serving Egg Harbor Township, the Boulder Food Rescue, servicing Boulder, Colorado, and the Maryland Food Bank, serving Aberdeen, Maryland.

To positively impact the city we've called home for nearly a century, in April we supported three Central Ohio organizations to provide increased emergency support. 

• A $500,000 gift to the YMCA of Central Ohio supported expanded emergency shelter access, stood up pandemic childcare sites for first responders, launched a virtual health and wellness program efforts and supported the staff serving the needs of the community. 
• A $250,000 gift to the Community Shelter Board for homeless prevention programming provided a safety net for those most at risk of homelessness. 
• A gift of $250,000 to LifeCare Alliance ensured 75,000 meals could be purchased, packaged and delivered to seniors in need during the pandemic. 

We also announced support of community organizations committed to creating an equal and just society. The Equal Justice Initiative, the United Negro College Fund and the Columbus Urban League each received $100,000.

• Equal Justice Initiative, for their commitment to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the U.S., challenging racial and economic injustice, and protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.
• United Negro College Fund, in support of their mission to build a robust and nationally recognized pipeline of under-represented students who become highly qualified college graduates.
• Columbus Urban League, for their eviction prevention programs for those experiencing hardship due to COVID-19.

Traditionally, Battelle’s philanthropic focus has supported STEM education programs across the U.S. We have not wavered in that dedication. As schools moved to online instruction, supporting early childhood learning—particularly for children in at-risk communities—is more important than ever. In addition to our existing involvement with STEM, we donated $2.15 million to the Columbus Metropolitan Library Foundation to support the library’s “Young Minds” initiatives, which focus on improving kindergarten readiness, third-grade reading proficiency and high-school graduation rates.

We also announced a $1 million gift to the Washington State STEM Education Foundation near Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The gift aims to provide transformative, immersive STEM learning experiences, giving students access to resources that could help guide them toward futures in STEM careers.