Archer Daniels Midland Company Supports MEF

April 15, 2015

Archer Daniels Midland Company Supports MEF Middle School Summer Program with a New Corporate Grant

Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) recently donated $10,000 to Midtown Educational Foundation (MEF) for its Summer Achievement Programs for at-risk middle school youth. The programs at Metro Achievement Center for girls and Midtown Center for boys provide rigorous academics, individual mentoring, as well as summer fun in sports, the arts, and weekly field trips. They also encourage positive decision-making skills during a critical age when many at-risk youth begin to falter and lose their way.

”As we celebrate 50 years of serving Chicago’s at-risk youth and lay the strategic groundwork for how we want to continue to guide youth onto pathways of success, the gift from ADM Cares will ensure that MEF can serve the kids who are enrolling right now in our summer program,” said Glenn Wilke, MEF Executive Director. “In a climate where many corporations find that they have to pull back from their charitable endeavors, it is inspiring to gain a new corporate partner here in Chicago.”

MEF’s holistic programming serves a vital need in the community by supporting transformational success among Chicago’s at-risk youth. Ninety-eight percent of MEF 8th graders go on to enroll in college prep high schools. Further, for the past fifteen consecutive years, 100 percent of MEF seniors have graduated from high school and enrolled in college. A great majority of these students were first generation college students. Finally, MEF is not just concerned with academic success, but is concerned with graduating students of good character who through their leadership exemplify powerful traits such as integrity and resourcefulness that will serve them for a lifetime.

The donation was given through ADM Cares. ADM Cares is a social investment program that directs funds to initiatives and organizations that drive meaningful social, economic and environmental progress worldwide. The program comprises three distinct focus areas: supporting the responsible development of agriculture, improving the quality of life in ADM communities and fostering employee giving and volunteer activities.