Press Releases
11/15/2018
MCC Foundation Honors Avangrid Foundation, RG&E for Making Anti-Poverty Program Possible
MCC Foundation Honors Avangrid Foundation, RG&E for Making Anti-Poverty Program Possible
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ROCHESTER, N.Y. –Nov. 15, 2018—This evening, the Monroe Community College Foundation will present its 2018 Salute to Excellence award to the Avangrid Foundation and Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation (RG&E). The award recognizes the Avangrid Foundation and RG&E’s leadership investment in Single Stop at MCC, a program that helps students connect with free or low-cost resources on campus and in the local community in order to continue their education. Nicole Licata Grant, director of the Avangrid Foundation, will accept the award on Thursday, Nov. 15 before approximately 300 business and community leaders at the MCC Foundation’s 29th annual Salute to Excellence dinner at the Joseph A. Floreano Rochester Riverside Convention Center.
In 2016, the Avangrid Foundation and RG&E’s $250,000 investment enabled MCC to partner with Single Stop USA, a national nonprofit agency that helps people access a community “safety net” of free or low-cost resources and services through a single office located at MCC’s Downtown Campus. Delivered services include assistance with food benefits, transportation, child care subsidies, medical care and tax preparation. Eligible students receive the support they need to overcome challenges, complete their education, obtain good jobs and achieve financial self-sufficiency. MCC is the only college in Upstate New York to offer the program. Since 2013, the Avangrid Foundation, in partnership with RG&E has also invested more than $75,000 in support for scholarships for MCC students in addition to Single Stop.
“We know that the barriers to education are more than academics,” said Nicole Licata Grant. “The community of Greater Rochester is forward- thinking, and so it was natural for us to give our full support to this new model with a long-time partner, and it has demonstrated effectiveness in changing lives already.”
Since 2016, the Single Stop program at MCC has received more than 250 applications from students seeking access to an array of social, financial, and legal services.
“Through their philanthropy, Avangrid Foundation and RG&E have made a real difference in students’ lives,” says Gretchen Wood, CFRE, chief advancement officer and executive director of the MCC Foundation. “These efforts remove barriers to educational completion and empower students to break the cycle of poverty. We are pleased to present the 2018 Salute to Excellence to the Avangrid Foundation and RG&E in celebration of their support and leadership.”
Carl A. Taylor, president and chief executive officer of NYSEG and RG&E, serves as the honorary chair for the event. Sergio Esteban, chief executive officer, LaBella Associates, D.P.C. serves as chair of the MCC Foundation’s Governance Committee and as the event chair. Lead sponsors include Avangrid Foundation, Corning Incorporated Foundation and Democrat and Chronicle.
An honored Rochester tradition, the Salute to Excellence award reflects the recipient’s commitment to public higher education and the community. Past recipients of the Salute to Excellence award include Sandra Parker and Dutch Summers, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Greater Rochester Health Foundation, Xerox Foundation, Robin ’80 and Timothy ’80 Wentworth, and the Corning Incorporated Foundation.
The event reception will begin at 5:30 p.m.; the dinner and award ceremony will begin at 6:30 p.m.
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About Avangrid: Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) aspires to be the leading sustainable energy company in the United States. Headquartered in Orange, CT with approximately $44 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states, Avangrid has two primary lines of business: networks and renewables. Through its networks business, Avangrid owns and operates eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Through its renewables business, Avangrid owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. Avangrid employs approximately 8,000 people and has been recognized by JUST Capital in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 as one of the JUST 100 companies – a ranking of America’s best corporate citizens. In 2024, Avangrid ranked first among utilities and 12 overall. The company supports the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2024 for the sixth consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute. Avangrid is a member of the group of companies controlled by Iberdrola, S.A. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com.
About Iberdrola: Iberdrola is one of the world's biggest energy companies and a leader in renewables, spearheading the energy transition to a low carbon economy. The group supplies energy to almost 100 million people in dozens of countries. With a focus on renewable energy, smart networks and smart solutions for customers, Iberdrola’s main markets include Europe (Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the United States, Brazil, Mexico and Australia. The company is also present in growth markets such as Japan, Taiwan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland, among others.
With a workforce of nearly 40,000 and assets in excess of €141.7 billion, across the world, Iberdrola helps to support 400,000 jobs across its supply chain, with annual procurement of €12.2 billion. A benchmark in the fight against climate change, Iberdrola has invested more than €130 billion over the past two decades to help build a sustainable energy model, based on sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.
