Atlanta, Ga. Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (PCNA) is partnering with Morehouse College, the nation’s only historically Black liberal arts college focused on educating men, to launch a new scholarship for business majors and a guest lecture series that will expose students to the global automotive industry. In the first year of PCNA’s first-ever gift to a college, The Porsche Scholarship will benefit 10 sophomores, juniors and seniors who are majoring in Business Administration or Economics and have at least a 3.3 grade point average. The funds will assist students with tuition as well as room and board expenses.
Through its partnership with Morehouse, PCNA hopes to provide greater access to post-secondary education on an ongoing basis, while also inspiring students to pursue careers in the automotive industry. Beginning this spring, PCNA will also launch a virtual, in-classroom guest lecture series with Morehouse to bring real-world perspective from the automotive sector to course curriculum. PCNA will lend its expertise to students in their Customer Relationship Management and Advance Corporate Finance courses, followed by other areas of study in years to come.
“Porsche supports institutions that share our commitment to the connected goals of quality education and social equity,” said Kjell Gruner, President and CEO of PCNA. “Morehouse College is an acknowledged national model for developing the next generation of leaders, and a logical partner in our hometown of Atlanta. As a brand dedicated to delivering dreams, I am proud we can contribute to student development at Morehouse and cultivate a stronger connection between these future leaders and the mobility sector.”
“On behalf of Morehouse College, I would like to thank Porsche Cars North America for working with us to expand academic opportunities for our business students,” said David A. Thomas, President of Morehouse College. “Choosing Morehouse as the site of PCNA’s first college scholarship program shows that Porsche is committed to academic excellence and the development of leaders of color. We look forward to collaborating with Porsche experts in our classrooms and hope that this relationship will be the bridge that leads to more Morehouse students starting new careers in the automotive industry, a business sector in need of more diversity.”
“Porsche is an industry leader that cares about local communities and has demonstrated its support through philanthropy,” said Monique Dozier, Vice President of the Morehouse College Office of Institutional Advancement. “By establishing this relationship with Porsche Cars North America, our students will not only benefit as recipients of the first-ever PCNA college scholarship, but they will also receive some important insight about global business strategies in classes taught by Porsche employees. We appreciate PCNA’s generosity and commitment to higher education.”
Morehouse College has a nationally-acclaimed business program and is the top feeder school for Black men entering Harvard Business School. The College educates 2,100 students annually, 60 percent of whom come from families with household incomes of $40,000 or less. As the national epicenter for thought leadership on civil rights, Morehouse is committed to helping the nation address racial inequities, which have created disparities in income, employment, health care, housing, and educational opportunities for people of African descent.
About Porsche Cars North America, Inc. | One Porsche Drive, Atlanta, GA 30354 USA
Kjell Gruner is President and CEO of Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (PCNA), where he is responsible for both the United States and Canada. He also heads the executive leadership team of Porsche Digital, Inc., the sports car manufacturer’s digital subsidiary in the U.S. Gruner’s complete bio is available at newsroom.porsche.com.
Established in 1984, Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (PCNA) is the exclusive U.S. importer of the Porsche 911, 718 Boxster, 718 Cayman, Macan, Cayenne, Panamera and Taycan. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, since 1998, PCNA is also home to the first Porsche Experience Center in North America featuring a module-based 1.6 mile driver development track, business center, and fine dining restaurant, 356. The company operates a second Porsche Experience Center near Los Angeles. That 53-acre complex features a driver development track with eight educational modules totaling 4.1 miles, a business center, and Restaurant 917. PCNA supports 192 independently owned and operated Porsche dealerships in the U.S., including supplying parts, service, marketing, and training. They, in turn, work to provide Porsche customers with a best-in-class experience that is in keeping with the Porsche brand's 70-year history of leadership in the advancement of vehicle performance, safety, and efficiency. PCNA is an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Porsche AG, which is headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany.
At the core of this success is Porsche's proud racing heritage that boasts some 30,000-plus motorsport wins to date.
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About Morehouse College
Morehouse College is the only historically Black college dedicated to educating men. Founded in 1867, Morehouse is a private, liberal arts institution and the nation’s top producer of Black men who go on to receive doctorates and the top producer of Rhodes Scholars among HBCUs. The College was named to the list of U.S. institutions that produced the most Fulbright Scholars in 2019-2020. As the epicenter for thought leadership on civil rights, Morehouse is committed to helping the nation address the inequities caused by institutional racism, which has created social and economic disparities for people of African descent. Prominent Morehouse alumni include: Martin Luther King Jr., Nobel Peace Prize Laureate; Dr. David Satcher, former U.S. Surgeon General; Shelton “Spike” Lee, Academy Award-winning American filmmaker; Maynard H. Jackson, the first African American mayor of Atlanta; Jeh Johnson, former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security; Louis W. Sullivan, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and founding dean of the Morehouse School of Medicine; Bakari Sellers, attorney and CNN political analyst; Randall Woodfin, elected as the youngest mayor of Birmingham in 120 years; and Raphael Warnock, Senator from Georgia. Morehouse currently has more than 18,000 alumni in 14 countries. For more information, visit: https://morehouse.edu.
Morehouse President David Thomas and PCNA President and CEO Kjell Gruner