The Salo family establishes an endowment for Social Innovation at Algonquin College
Posted on Wednesday, June 5th, 2024
OTTAWA – June 5, 2024, Algonquin College is thrilled to announce a generous donation of $50,000 from the Salo family, establishing The Salo Family Endowment for Social Innovation. This endowment is dedicated to supporting student interns in the Social Innovation Lab, empowering students to engage in meaningful social innovation projects.
The Salo Family Endowment for Social Innovation will provide funding for student intern salaries, allowing them to work on projects that support community-based organizations, including service agencies, charities, non-profits, and social enterprises. This initiative aligns with Algonquin College’s demonstrated culture of social responsibility and community engagement.
“The Salo Family Endowment for Social Innovation represents a significant step forward in our mission to support students and community organizations through social innovation approaches,” said Kevin Holmes, Manager of the Social Innovation Lab. “This generous donation from the Salo Family will enable our students to have life-changing experiences while making a positive impact in our community. We are so incredibly grateful to the Salo family for this support.”
Russ Salo, CEO of GPS to GO and lead representative of the Salo family, shared his inspiration for making this substantial contribution. “My visit to the Social Innovation Lab at Algonquin College was truly eye-opening,” said Salo. “I was deeply impressed by the fearlessness of these young entrepreneurial people, many of whom are new Canadians or first-generation immigrants. They charge forward into business ownership and innovation without fear, and that is something I greatly respect and want to promote.”
Salo continued, “As a small business owner who started his company with nothing and grew it into something where I can now afford to give back, I love the idea of fostering entrepreneurial members of the Algonquin College family. My wife is an alumna of Algonquin College, and I briefly pursued a career with the paramedic course there in the 1990s. This endowment is a way to ensure that students have the resources they need to succeed and to foster innovation that benefits us all.”
For more information about The Salo Family Endowment for Social Innovation, please contact advancement@algonquincollege.com.
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About Algonquin College
The mission of Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology is to transform hopes and dreams into lifelong success. Algonquin College, an Ontario public sector community college, does this by offering hands-on, digitally connected, experiential learning in more than 250 programs. Algonquin College is the largest polytechnic institute in Eastern Ontario, with campuses in Ottawa, Perth, Pembroke and AC Online.
For media inquiries:
Meg Fraser
Communications Officer
Algonquin College
fraserm2@algonquincollege.com