Gene Haas Foundation Gifts $1 Million to SME-Education Foundation

Gene Haas

When Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) drivers #10-Danica Patrick and #39-Ryan Newman wheel their Chevrolets onto the track for the Sept. 29 AAA 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Dover, their racecars will spotlight the Gene Haas Foundation and its most recent grant recipient: the Society of Manufacturing Engineers – Education Foundation (SME-Education Foundation).

The Gene Haas Foundation, formed in 1999 by SHR co-owner Gene Haas, recently gifted $1 million to the SME-Education Foundation with the money designated for scholarships in manufacturing training and education.

The scholarships will benefit as many as 1,000 students entering machinist training programs in the United States and abroad. Providing scholarship funds to community colleges and vocational schools for students entering technical training programs, especially machinist-based certificate and degree programs, is of particular interest to the Gene Haas Foundation.

Haas is the founder of Oxnard, Calif.-based Haas Automation, the largest and most modern machine tool builder in the western world. Patrick's #10 GoDaddy Chevy will carry the Gene Haas Foundation and SME-Education Foundation logos on its lower rear quarter panels, while Newman's #39 State Water Heaters Chevy will feature SME-Education Foundation logos on its C-post. Students interested in applying for a scholarship can do so by visiting www.smeef.org.