The Freeport-McMoRan Foundation today announced a $6 million investment to increase access to higher education for Native American students as part of an expanded partnership with Education Forward Arizona, to help 200 Native American students graduate by 2026.

This expansion of the partnership will support two cohorts of 100 Native American students, providing scholarships of up to $6,000 per year and support services to help them successfully pursue and earn a post-secondary certificate, associate’s or bachelor’s degree. The first cohort will be selected this fall and the second cohort in the fall of 2023.

“The Freeport-McMoRan Foundation has provided more than 374 scholarships to Native American students over the past 12 years, and we remain deeply committed to helping students from tribal communities pursue higher education,” said Freeport Foundation President. -McMoRan, Tracy Bame. “Arizona has the second largest population of Native American students in the nation, but with completion rates of just 12.2% compared to 46% for the state as a whole, we believe it is essential to increase efforts to ensure that these students have a greater opportunity to succeed in higher education and the socio-economic mobility it allows.

“We are proud of our continued work with Education Forward Arizona and see the tremendous impact this partnership can have on building resilience for individuals, families, and Native American communities at large as graduates return to serve their communities. in a striking way. We are particularly pleased to so significantly increase the number of scholarships from 23 in 2021 to 200 for 2022-2023 and beyond, which will also include the support services that ensure these students have the best chance of success. We look forward to following and supporting their journey.

Eligible students must be an enrolled member of one of the eligible Tribal Nations, which include Hualapai Tribe, Navajo Nation, San Carlos Apache Tribe, White Mountain Apache Tribe and Tohono O’odham Nation. While priority is given to students from these five tribes, enrolled members of nine other tribal nations are also eligible, including Ak-Chin Indian Community, Gila River Indian Community, Hopi Tribe, Pascua Yaqui Tribe, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, Tonto Apache Tribe, Yavapai-Apache Nation, Yavapai Prescott Indian Tribe and Zuni Pueblo.

“It’s an exciting time to expand our support for Native American students across Arizona, and this program will be a significant contributor to achieving one of our primary goals of increasing the state’s pass rate, especially among underserved populations,” said Vince Roig, President. of the Board of Directors, Education Forward Arizona. “Thank you to the Freeport-McMoRan Foundation for their partnership and investment in advancing education in Arizona.”

As administrator of the scholarships, Education Forward Arizona will manage the application process, select and award scholarship recipients, and distribute funds to each school. In addition to scholarships, each recipient will receive support services from Education Forward Arizona Success Advisors, which are essential to ensuring that students can successfully complete their academic journey, persist in higher education, and earn a degree or a title. These support services include mentoring sessions, enrollment advice, academic follow-up, financial aid advice, peer networking, professional development, and more.

“This year, more than any other year, students need as much support as possible in pursuing their post-secondary education,” said Rich Nickel, president and CEO of Education Forward Arizona. “The scholarships help them start the process and the success advisors help them make sure they persist until the end. Partnerships are also essential to our work. We are grateful for our partnership with the Freeport-McMoRan Foundation, which has helped expand our services statewide over the past few years.

About Education Forward Arizona

Education Forward Arizona was created to change the way people view and support education as a key driver for improving Arizona’s economy and quality of life. The organization’s work includes providing scholarships and innovative programs to students and advocating for policies and funding that advance the Achieve60AZ postsecondary achievement goal and other goals of the Arizona Education Progress Meter. Learn more at EducationForwardArizona.org.

About Freeport-McMoRan

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. is a leading international mining company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. The company operates large, long-lived and geographically diverse assets with significant proven and probable reserves of copper, gold and molybdenum. Freeport-McMoRan is one of the largest publicly traded copper producers in the world. The Company’s portfolio of assets includes the Grasberg mining district in Indonesia, one of the largest copper and gold deposits in the world; and major mining operations in North and South America, including the large-scale Morenci mining district in Arizona and the Cerro Verde operation in Peru.

Freeport-McMoRan works with communities, governments, non-profit organizations and other stakeholders to maximize the benefits of mining and contribute to community well-being and resilience, including communities Native Americans close to the Company’s operations or those with historical cultural affiliation to the lands on which the Company operates. Read more: Freeport in my community – Native

Initiatives or Freeport-McMoRan–Sustainability–Indigenous