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Amazon is donating $1.75 million to the science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics high school that is under construction in Syracuse, the company announced Wednesday.

The school, which will open in the old Central Technical High School building, will cater to high school students who want to pursue a career in STEAM fields. Amazon’s donation will fund robotics and computer science initiatives at the school, according to the press release.

“We’re proud to partner with Onondaga County — which we will soon call home — increase access to STEM education for thousands of local students for years to come,” said Ryan Smith, director of North America fulfillment operations at Amazon, in the press release.

The announcement comes as Amazon prepares to open its first robotics fulfillment center in Onondaga County, which is expected to create more than 1,000 local jobs.

Employees at the facility will work alongside Amazon robotic technology to pack and ship orders. They’ll also have access to Amazon’s innovative Career Choice program, which pre-pays up to 95% of tuition for college courses in high-demand fields.

“Robotics is going to be a big part of the curriculum at the STEAM High School and this donation will benefit that initiative greatly,” said Jaime Alicea, superintendent of Syracuse City School District, in the release.

SCSD will operate the STEAM school, which will be open to any student in Onondaga County. The graduating class will have approximately 250 students each year who are on a career path to fill technology-related jobs in central New York.

Amazon also offers a computer science education program called Amazon Future Engineer, designed to educate young adults from underrepresented and underserved communities. Two schools in Onondaga County currently participate in this program.

The STEAM school is expected to open up enrollment in the next two years.

“We hope they’ll join our team at Amazon one day and teach us a thing or two as they build their careers here,” Smith said.

Published on April 13, 2021 at 10:50 pm

Contact Sarah: scalessa@syr.edu | @sarahalessan