HAMBURG, N.Y. – The Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Foundation and the Garman Family Foundation recently awarded Hilbert College nearly $65,000 in grants to support a Post-secondary Autistic Spectrum Support Program, an update of the Psychology Research Laboratory and the Hilbert Opportunity Scholars Program.

Hilbert College received a $51,504 grant from the Garman Family Foundation. The grant will support the Hilbert Opportunity Scholars Program with $25,000 in funding. The Hilbert Opportunity Scholars Program aims to support low to middle income and first-generation students. Currently, 50% of Hilbert students are Pell Grant-eligible and 87% qualify for financial aid.

The Garman grant will also support updating the Psychology Research Laboratory with $26,504 earmarked for the project.  The Psychology Research laboratory helps students create and execute their own original research projects. Updates for the laboratory include a new closed circuit television system with DVR storage, software for video editing and administration of psychological experiments and other equipment like camcorders, printers and tablet devices.

The Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Foundation awarded Hilbert College $13,000 to support the development of the Post-secondary Autistic Spectrum Support Program, which aims to aid students who are high-functioning on the Autism Spectrum. The program will help those students foster the social skills needed to succeed in an academic environment as well as help them seek quality employment during and after graduation.  In addition, the program will train faculty and staff to better understand and help students that have an Autism Spectrum Disorder.

About the Garman Family Foundation

The Garman Family Foundation is committed to supporting activities within Western New York that promote the welfare of human and natural resources. It encourages endeavors that strengthen families and communities and advance individuals to become productive and responsible citizens.

About the Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Foundation

The Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Foundation supports community programming that results in children, adolescents, and young adults affected by substance abuse, learning disabilities, mental illness, and intellectual disabilities achieving their full potential. The Foundation is dedicated to societal impact through healthy communities and capacity building. We work diligently to foster a sense of empowerment and an environment of collaboration.

Hilbert College, located in suburban Hamburg, N.Y., south of Buffalo, is a private four-year college founded in 1957 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition. With nearly 1,100 students, Hilbert is a dynamic Western New York college that offers career-focused majors, including one of the top criminal justice programs in the region, and more than 50 minors and concentrations. The college’s engaging, student-centered campus community offers numerous leadership, internship, and service learning opportunities from which students launch successful careers while making positive changes in their communities. The Hilbert Blueprint promotes a well-rounded student experience over four years – starting with the Foundations Seminar in the freshman year, followed by Sophomore Service, Junior Symposium, and culminating with the Senior Capstone. Hilbert has expanded its academic offerings with the college’s first graduate programs and evening degree programs geared to adult learners.