Eli Lilly and Company Foundation Funds Center for Leadership Development
March 19 2007 - 8:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
New learning center will more than double group's community
outreach INDIANAPOLIS, March 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The
Center for Leadership Development (CLD) today announced that it has
received a $1.4 million gift from the Eli Lilly and Company
Foundation for the construction of a new learning center that will
expand the organization's capacity and further enrich its youth
programming. Lilly's leading gift is part of a larger fundraising
project to build the new Lilly Center for Leadership Development.
The non-profit organization needs an additional $1 million to reach
their capital campaign goal of $4 million. This new facility for
CLD programming will be located at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and
24th Streets in downtown Indianapolis. Dennis Bland, president of
the CLD, says that Lilly is playing a significant role in
facilitating their ability to more than double their services for
Indiana's minority youth. "CLD has established a thirty-year track
record of empowering African American youth to excel in academics,
college, career and life. Lilly has been a supporter since the
beginning and has remained a true partner throughout the years,"
Bland said. "Together, we are demonstrating our mutual commitment
to delivering bold answers for our youth and community." Lilly's
partnership with the CLD Lilly's support over time will help the
CLD reach their goal of serving 2,500 minority youth and their
families per year. Currently, the CLD serves more than 1,200
students and their parents annually. Few youth development
experiences in the country rival the combination of range, depth,
content and success rates of CLD programming; nearly 80 percent of
CLD students will attend college and almost 50 percent of those
attending will graduate as compared to the state graduation average
for African American college students of 24 percent. The Lilly/CLD
partnership also hopes to encourage a greater percentage of Central
Indiana students pursuing degrees in math and sciences. Lilly's
gift will not only increase the number of youth prepared to attend
and succeed in college but will also help to provide continuing
support for families in the development of well-rounded young
adults. The support from Lilly will be used to assist the CLD in
their plans to replicate their programming so that youth outside
Indianapolis and the state of Indiana will be exposed to CLD
experiences. Other communities in the U.S. view the CLD as a
national leader in empowering minority youth and many are
contacting the organization to emulate their approach. "The CLD's
emphasis on building character, improving education, giving back to
the community and encouraging leadership and integrity is
consistent with the values Lilly supports and desires of it
employees. We are fortunate to have many CLD alumni working with us
at Lilly demonstrating these important attributes," said John
Lechleiter, Lilly president and chief operating officer. "We
support a variety of educational programs in Indiana and nationally
to ensure we can continually deliver on our mission to provide
medicines that help people live longer, healthier lives -- future
innovation is in the hands of our brightest youth." The Center for
Leadership Development The CLD is a non-profit organization
fostering the advancement of minority youth in Central Indiana as
future professionals, business and community leaders by providing
experiences that encourage personal development and educational
attainment. Students are empowered to incorporate the CLD's core
Principles for Success: character development, educational
excellence, leadership effectiveness, community service and career
achievement. Structured, research-based curriculum methodically
develops productive citizens which contribute to the growth, and
success of Indianapolis and the nation. For additional information
please visit http://www.cldinc.org/. Eli Lilly and Company Lilly, a
leading innovation-driven corporation, is developing a growing
portfolio of first-in-class and best-in-class pharmaceutical
products by applying the latest research from its own worldwide
laboratories and from collaborations with eminent scientific
organizations. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind., Lilly provides
answers -- through medicines and information -- for some of the
world's most urgent medical needs. Additional information about
Lilly is available at http://www.lilly.com/. DATASOURCE: Center for
Leadership Development CONTACT: Tamiko Jordan of Center for
Leadership Development, +1-317-923-8111, ; Carla Cox of Eli Lilly
and Company, +1-317-651-4017,
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